Ties That Bind
by curiousfan
Summary: Good intentions sometimes go awry. Will the ducks intervention be enough to keep Buzz and his sister out of harms way?
1. Chapter 1

_Okay then, here it is. My random piece of self indulgence while I work on other projects which will not be finding their way into fan fiction._

_Inspiration is a funny thing indeed. I still don't know the reason why I became a fan of this show way back when, especially considering I never even saw all of the very limited number of episodes._

_Well, neither here nor there I suppose. Hope at least someone finds enjoyment in this fiction at any rate._

_**Note:** I never actually saw the episode with Buzz in full (in English anyway). As a result I don't know exactly what the place Buzz was staying in was called. It looked governmental however, so I let my imagination run with that. Same goes for the man who seemed to be in charge of him. For lack of a name, I called him Al. Anyone who can set me straight on these points, feel free. I may not change the story, but it would be nice to know :)_

_**Disclaimer:** No officer, I do not own, nor do I claim to own the Mighty Ducks. They belong to Disney, a conglomerate I have no desire to challenge._

**Ties that Bind**

Chapter1

On most days, Anaheim was a sunny paradise. Agreeable temperatures, a decided lack of humidity as well as a dependable water supply made most days ideal. Its citizens could most often be found out of doors, clad for perpetual summer in only shorts and a tank top. The most popular drinks were iced. So accustomed to their ideal weather were Anaheim's citizens that when the odd rainy or blustery day came about, they very nearly threw themselves into a panic.

It was an amusing thing to watch.

The young blond boy pressed against the glass window smiled then laughed to himself as he watched a pot bellied man chase his tumbling beach towel down the center of Anaheim's main outdoor shopping mall. The storm had come upon the city suddenly, and within an hour the sky had turned from a welcoming clear blue to an ominous gray. With the first thunderclap dogs had run whimpering from their owners. Soon after the owners followed as a downpour of rain drenched the entire city. The mall shops had become a temporary haven for the dispossessed people. All of them dripping small lakes of water onto normally dry carpet, much to the horror of shop owners.

The comic shop where Buzz had been browsing was no exception to unexpected visitors as the small bell above the door rang out and four soaked figures hurried inside, eager to be out from under the downpour.

"Well, if we have to take refuge, I can't think of a better place. Thrash, Mookie, how's it going guys?"

Buzz's ears perked up at the familiar voice.

"Wish I could say business is slamming my feathered friend, but I'd be lying." the well-pierced young man behind the counter answered.

"Oh man, that bites. What do ya say I help you out? Say, a hundred dollars worth of new reading material, give or take?"

"Dive, don't you think that's a little much?"

"Awhh, come on Wing. We're loaded, a hundred bucks is nothing."

"That's not the point Dive."

Buzz peeked out from between the window and the front display and broke into a wide smile as two member's of his favorite team argued the pros and cons of good spending habits.

"You know," he piped up, "the latest issue of 'Rockman: Unearthed' just came out."

The blond duck turned from his older brother and looked down. "Buzz! Hey little dude." He slapped the kid a high five before his expression turned hopeful. "You're not pulling my feathers are ya? I've been waiting for that comic, they kept delaying it."

Buzz pointed to the front display he had just come from. "Over there, second shelf, third from the right." Nosedive hustled to the front, nearly upsetting a game display in the process.

"Dive, come on." Wildwing protested half-heartedly. It was hard to say no to his brother when he became all gleeful.

"It's a collector's item Wing. Practically an investment." Nosedive countered before becoming lost in modern mythology.

"I've noticed they're always collector's items." Wildwing grumbled. Finally done wringing his hair out, Duke came up to his leader's side and clapped him on the shoulder.

"We're stuck here anyway Wildwing. Let the kid play." Turning to Buzz, who stood watching the ducks conversation with rapt attention, he offered a sidelong smile. "Hey lil' smart guy. How ya doin'?"

Buzz smiled. "I'm good. Really good."

Duke grinned then looked around, suddenly frowning. "You on your own kid?" he asked. The last time the team had encountered this genius child, he had successfully escaped his room at a government facility to come meet them. He had then been promptly kidnapped by Draganus. Granted, they had not seen hide nor hair of the terrible lizard since their last face off, but still, better safe than sorry.

But Buzz didn't seemed fazed by the question. "Nah, I'm not alone, but it's looks like I'm gonna have to wait until the storms over before I can meet up with her. What about you guys? Are there bad guys around?" he asked, eagerly.

Wildwing chuckled. Buzz reminded him of a younger Nosedive at times. "No, just escaping the pond for a while. Getting some fresh air." He gazed out at the darkened clouds. "Or at least we were."

"I guess even hero's need some time off huh?" Buzz said. Suddenly something seemed to catch his attention and he peered up at Wildwing, watching him intensely. "Somethings different about you." he said.

Wildwing just stood there looking confused. Finally the boy seemed to find what he was looking for and his instense expression melted away. "No mask!" he cried out happily. "Hey, I've never seen you without your mask. You look cool."

Wildwing rubbed the back of his neck nervously and chuckled. "Thanks, I guess. I still have it though, just in case."

Buzz nodded as if that made sense to him and his grin spread even farther as he spotted the last duck in the party, who was trying to disappear behind a display of sunglasses.

"Hi Mallory!" he practically shouted to the redhead. Her hiding place discovered, she sighed and walked over.

"Hi Buzz." she deadpanned. Duke elbowed her in the ribs.

"Come on sweetheart, you can do better than that for your number one fan." he whispered. Mallory growled at him. Regardless of their popularity, Mallory had never done well with fame. Fan's annoyed her greatly. It was a great testament to Wildwings leadership and ability to handle a crowd of crazed human's that she had not gone after them with a hockey stick...yet.

Nonetheless, Buzz was a good fan, as fans went, and for all his brains, he was just a kid. It wouldn't hurt her to be nice. "It's nice to see you again Buzz." She almost meant it. "How are..um..things?" she finished lamely. Duke and Wildwing caught each other's eyes and then simultaneously rolled them to the heavens.

But if Buzz noticed the insincerity, he didn't let on. "Good, they're really, really good!" he enthused. Emerging from the comic display, Nosedive laughed.

"What, you win the lottery or something?" he asked.

"Nope. I got adopted!" he announced proudly, emphasizing his words by thumbing himself in the chest.

The four ducks looked at each other cautiously. Granted, they didn't know much about this planet's, or for that matter, even this countries customs regarding orphaned children, but Buzz was without a doubt a child prodigy. A prodigy the government had under it's wing. Its very protective and solicitous wing.

"So, uh...how did 'hat happen 'xactly?" Duke ventured.

"Well...I sorta tracked down my older sister. It's complicated. You know, computer stuff." he said with the arrogant sort of dismissiveness that set's ones teeth, or beak, on edge. He continued.

"The institute didn't want to let me go of course, but Al helped us out. Plus," and here he grinned mischievously, "Lia had some dirt on the higher ups she dug up. She's nineteen so she was old enough to adopt me legally. Al gets to check in on us whenever he wants to, but Lia doesn't mind, so it's cool."

"I take it Lia is your sister." Wildwing said, and Buzz nodded enthusiastically.

"Sound's like you're happy kid." Duke commented. The blond boy grinned, then shoved his hands into his pockets and attempted to shrug nonchalantly as the bell above the door rang again, signaling another refugee from the storm.

"It's cool ya know. At least she cooks better than the Institute. But she won't let me eat hotdogs, so that sucks."

"I'm not letting you eat something even top scientists can't identify." came a feminine voice. Oddly, it seemed to be coming from under large bulky blue tarp with legs. The new creature startled Mallory so much she stepped back onto Nosedive's foot. The blond duck yelped in pain.

Meanwhile, the blue tarp was swaying unsteadily towards the front counter, where Mookie and Thrash were hurriedly pulling their soda cans and uneaten food out of the way. The creature took one last uncertain step on thin legs and small feet before settling the bulk of it's weight on the counter top. An audible sigh of relief was heard.

"Sorry I'm late Buzz. I was at the used bookstore when the rain came down. So much of their stock was outdoors the employees couldn't get it all in safely." the voice said from under the tarp.

"It's okay. I was talking with my friends. But it looks like you got a lot." Buzz said as the tarp began to move and a young woman with hair the same shade as his own emerged. But Duke noted that was where the similarities ended. Her eyes were a clear green as opposed to her brothers eager brown. Beneath the rain-drenched sleeveless top and blue skirt, her small frame was lithe, it almost had a flowing aspect to it. This was in direct contrast to Buzz, who at eleven was already beginning to form a protruding belly, characteristic of his sedentary lifestyle at the Institute. Although, Duke had to admit the kid looked a bit healthier. Perhaps because of less junk food and new influences?

Buzz was already trying to get beneath the tarp, trying to see what his sister had brought. She smiled down at him.

"They gave me few freebies for helping them save their stock. Including..." she trailed off as she turned and tried to flip the tarp over what now appeared to be a stack of thick books. But with the added elevation of the counter it was a bit too tall for her. Wildwing pulled it over when her arms wouldn't quite reach.

"Thanks." she murmured, not even noticing who had helped her as she searched for the elusive book. She pulled it out from the stack and handed it to Buzz. "This." she said proudly. He read the front.

" 'The History of the Laser: More Interesting Than You Think.' Hey, cool!" he said. "Thanks."

Once again, a small smile found its way onto her features. "I found plenty more to keep us busy for the next few weeks, but I'm afraid I bought more than we can handle in one go." she said, eying the stack worriedly.

Buzz looked at the stack, and then to the ducks, then back to the stack. He smiled. "My friends can help us. Right guys?" he said, gazing up at Wildwing hopefully.

"You shouldn't volunteer people Buzz. It's rude." The young woman said, coming up behind him and dragging him back a little by his collar.

"It's not a problem." Wildwing spoke up. "I take it your Lia?"

She had to work to meet his eyes. He was at least a head taller than her. She nodded. "I am."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Wildwing." he said. Her expression was not one he was used to seeing, especially on women. Usually there a bit of flustering, combined with that very unique thing humans did, which was blushing. Blushing fascinated him. Because of their feathers, ducks did not share this particular emotional sign, a fact which had helped him strengthen the impression of being stoic. Many of the things female fans did embarrassed him greatly, and it was nice to keep that from showing at times.

The expression Lia seemed to be wearing however, was one of polite amusement coupled with a tinge of what looked like resignation. "I'm fairly familiar with you." she said. "Buzz talks about you, all of you...ahh...well, quite a bit actually." she finished with a weary but genuine smile.

"I should thank you for taking care of him last year. I really never thought I would see him again, and if you hadn't acted when you did, I never would have." she said, hugging Buzz from behind. The boy let her hug him for a moment before squirming out of her grasp.

"Ugh, don't get mushy Lia." he complained.

"Sorry."

From the sidelines, Duke cleared his throat. "So, ah, can we give you a lift sweetheart?"

Lia looked confused. "A lift? Why...oh yes, the books. No it's not necessary. We only live a mile away."

Mallory snorted. "And your telling me you and that shrimp are going to haul those back-breakers a whole mile? Let me guess, you don't have a car?"

"Well, no."

"Then don't be stupid and let us give you a lift."

"Mallory..." Wildwing warned. But Lia didn't seem offended. She looked to the team's leader.

"If you don't mind?" she said.

"No problem."

"Your sure?"

"He's sure." Nosedive chirped up as he hopped over and grabbed six or seven heavy books from the teetering stack. "Trust me, Wildwings' not nearly as intimidating as everyone on this planet seems to think he is."

He leaned in close to Buzz and Lia. "He sings in the shower." he whispered, then almost simultaneously ducked a clap to the ears by his older brother as he bolted for the exit.

Mallory and Duke laughed as Wildwing chased down his younger brother, somehow managing to relieve him of his heavy cargo and swat him on the head in one fluid motion. All before the younger mallard managed to reach the door. Feeling sufficiently avenged, Wildwing turned on his heal and headed back to the counter.

"It's still pouring out there Dive, you'll ruin the books." he said as he transferred the weight of the volumes he carried to his left arm and proceeded to stack the remaining books on top. Lia and Buzz watched in amazement as the stack on the counter grew smaller and smaller, eventually dwindling down to nothing. Wildwing motioned to Duke.

"Throw that tarp on for me Duke." he said, and the older mallard obliged.

"You can't carry all that." Lia eventually said.

Wildwing looked at her in confusion. "Why not? You did."

Lia looked from her two arms, which were still quivering slightly from the measly fifty foot walk from the bookstore to the comic store, then over to Wildwing's annoyingly steady left arm. Buzz tugged on her hand.

"It's okay Lia. Let's go." he said. She reluctantly agreed, following in Duke and Mallory's wake as they left the store.

The rain had not abated, and Duke threw his overcoat over Buzz and Lia as they all raced for the parking lot. Wildwing was already inside, securing the books in a storage compartment and helping them inside.

It would have been an awkward drive if not for Buzz's incessant chatter. Wildwing kept his eyes on the road and took quiet directions from Lia as Buzz managed to find a way to talk about everything from comic books to global warming in the space of a few minutes. Duke and Nosedive listened tolerantly but Mallory had her head in her hands and was groaning by the time they pulled up in front of an old three story brick building that had seen better days. The intricate stone work, while probably quite beautiful in it's day, was chipped and cracked. The bricks were losing their mortar and several windows were either cracked or broken. It looked abandoned.

"Ya' live here?" Duke asked with concern.

Buzz grinned and pointed to a weathered stone gargoyle on the third story. "Yeah, cool huh? The top looks a lot better than the bottom."

Duke had his qualms about how the stairway creaked and groaned as they made their way up but Buzz had been right. The top of the building was indeed better. It was obvious the building's top floors had been intended for the well-to-do citizens of Anaheim once upon a time. Hardwood floors met with full length windows overlooking the city. His experience as a thief told him the woodwork above the doors, windows, and fireplace was all by hand, and an experienced hand at that. Whoever this floor had been originally designed for, one thing was for certain. They had been wealthy.

In the center of the room, Buzz stood and spread his arms out wide. "Nice right? The windows are my favorite."

"Windows?" Mallory said. "Seems weird for a kid your age."

Buzz dropped his hands as his cheeks reddened a little. "Yeah, I guess. But, the Institute didn't have a whole lot of windows. So you know...I like them."

Mallory winced. Of course he would like them. The kid spent practically his whole existence in a lifeless institution.

Lia came up behind him. "They're my favorite too. Why don't you show Mallory the view?" she suggested. Buzz perked up, grinning from ear to ear.

Feeling guilty, Mallory allowed him to take her hand and pull her to the edge of the expansive panes. Nosedive followed. "See?" he said, pointing to the north. "You can see the Pond from here and over there..."

He was still pointing out landmarks to Mallory and Nosedive when Wildwing reached the top of the stairs, books once again balanced perfectly on his left hand. For some reason his apparent lack of tiredness from this endeavor annoyed Lia somewhat. However, she remembered to thank him gratefully as he set the volumes down at the end of a long string of bookshelves. Wildwing whistled appreciatively.

"So who has more, you or the downtown library?" he asked, pulling a book on twentieth century world history from the shelf and flipping it open.

Lia smiled and looked over to her brother with a look of exasperation mingled with affection. "Keeping his mind occupied is a constant and expensive challenge, but Al has been very generous. The Internet helps as well."

"Knowin' that kid, it probably creates problems too." Duke said, joining them. Lia's expression told him he had hit the nail on the proverbial head.

"If you only knew." she answered as Buzz dragged Mallory away from the window and over to the bookshelves.

"Your talking about me aren't you?" he accused.

"You do create problems." she said honestly. Buzz seemed pleased by this statement.

"Yeah, I do huh?" he said proudly. "Remember that one night?" he asked cryptically.

Lia shook her head. "Al said you're not to acknowledge that event. Ever."

"Al's boring. You are too sometimes."

"Boring is safe." Lia said firmly.

Buzz crossed his arms above his head and sighed. "Boring is boring." he said but dropped the subject. He turned to Wildwing.

"So whens your next game?" he asked.

"Well, the season's over the year, so we won't have another official game for a few more months." he answered, reluctantly re-shelving the history book.

"You mean I have to wait for months? Ah man." he complained loudly before turning to Wildwing once more, a hopeful glint in his eyes. "Wait, why don't you come to see us again?"

Wildwing took a step back. "Well, uh..." He liked the kid, sure, but coming to visit him? Buzz was adamant however.

"Yeah. And it won't be boring either! You can come to the circus, our treat! Right Lia?"

"Buzz..." Lia warned, to no avail. Buzz was excited.

"Circus?" Nosedive said, suddenly interested in where the conversation was headed. He had heard of circuses on television. They seemed pretty cool. Strange animals, lots of lights and acrobatics. Even better yet, lots of candy.

"It's not a circus exactly." Lia tried to say, but Buzz took over.

"Sure it is. It's just, you know, a high class circus so they charge more. But we can get you in for free. Lia's one of the performers tonight."

Duke looked from the excited boy to the now mortified young woman. "You're a circus performer?"

"No, I'm a med student." she said, glaring over at her brother. He didn't notice.

"She's both." he clarified. "She traveled with them for awhile, but when she found me she gave it up. But they're in town and one of their performers is sick, so she's doing them a favor. You'll come right? All of you?"

Wildwing looked to his team, all of whom shrugged uncertainly. With the notable exception of Nosedive who shook his head eagerly in the affirmative. "I suppose I could talk the rest into it." he said carefully, looking over to Lia. "But if you'd rather not?"

Lia stared at him for a moment before glancing over to the excited face of her brother. She sighed. If it wasn't for these people Buzz most likely would be kidnapped or dead. Circus tickets were among the least she could do to thank them.

"No, please, come. Buzz is right, the tickets won't be a problem. Andre' will probably give you the best seats in the house. He's a fan."

"Cool'la! I get to see a monkey!" Nosedive exclaimed.

A few minutes later the team was piling into the Migrator as Buzz waved from the doorway. "Don't forget! Seven o'clock! I'll meet you at the front entrance, okay?" he shouted for the fifth time.

Wildwing waved his assurances as the Migrator roared to life and they headed back for the pond.

"Well, today's certainly been...interestin'" Duke said from his seat.

"I don't want to go to some stupid circus." Mallory grumbled.

"You weren't puttin' up much resistance t' the idea up there." Duke said. Mallory shrugged.

"I was still feeling guilty." she mumbled.

Duke laughed. "Well, it won't hurt us t' get out of the Pond. Ever since Draganus split town we've spent a lot of our time there. It's time to go out int'a the world. See what it's like."

"From what I understand of the word 'circus' it's not the best example of seeing the world Duke." Mallory said.

"It's part of the culture sweetheart. It'll be fun. Side's, it'll make the kid real happy t' see us there."

Mallory grumbled incoherently. Duke grinned.

"I don't know know Duke, Buzz looked just about as happy as he could get today, don't you think?" Nosedive said from the passenger's seat.

Duke thought for a moment. "Yeah, suppose you're right. Lia seems t' really care for the kid."

"Of course she does, he's her brother." Wildwing interjected, his eyes trained on the road leading up to the pond. Nosedive looked back at Duke and rolled his eyes, albeit with a hint of a grin on his beak.

_Reviews most welcome_


	2. Chapter 2

_Greetings. Hope you all enjoy the second chapter. It's a bit long, sorry about that. I also must apologize for any French mistakes in here. I don't know French, so I had to use the dreaded internet translator. Sorry.  
_

**_Thank You _**_to **Southernlady **for your encouragement. And to **Mad-Eyed Owl**, thanks for the suggestions. I appreciated it :)_

_**Disclaimer:** Once again, the Mighty Ducks do not belong to me. Shame._

**Chapter 2**

The ducks, all six of them as promised, arrived later that evening at the front entrance of the largest tent any of them had ever seen. Even the refugee tents back on Puckworld didn't get as high or as big around as this one did. Grin, unaccustomed to having to raise his head for anything, found himself craning back his neck in an attempt to take the full height in.

The tent itself was of a faint beige color, with richly hued sheer streamers floating on the slight breeze of the evening. The atmosphere was festive and the sound of music permeated the air. All around them, humans of every shape, size, and color were eagerly filing into the elaborately decorated entrance, talking and laughing happily.

Duke smiled. Everything about this place spoke of fun and magic, a place were people let down their guards and lost themselves in the moment. A good place to understand humans and their complicated culture a bit better. Between the hockey season and Draganus, none of the team, including himself, had really had much interaction with humans. And those they did were usually associated with one of Phil's publicity stunts, which of course did not leave a good taste in their beaks. He knew around the time they had first arrived, Wildwing had been trying to read up on some of the planets history and societies, but the vastness of human culture was difficult to take in. As opposed to their own world, which had primarily one society, one language, and one government, Earth had untold thousands. Perhaps tens of thousands if you count those societies which had already passed to the wayside. Wildwing had eventually wandered into the rec room one evening and announced his defeat.

So with their mighty leader fallen, Duke figured they would have to learn as they went, and take what they could get. This 'circus' was as good an opportunity as any. And as an added bonus, it looked exciting. At least from the outside. They would have to get inside to see for sure, a goal currently being hindered at the moment by a small but steadily growing crowd of fans.

Wildwing wished they could all just blend into a crowd. Their beaks made it especially hard to hide in any crowd of flat-faced humans. The day Tanya actually succeeded in making a holo-mask so they could go out without being mobbed would be the day the entire team worshiped at her feet. As it was they just learned to deal with the fame. It was nevertheless annoying.

"Etre alle insectes! Voler!" Hollered an extravagantly costumed man, half running towards the crowd surrounding them and waving his hands, as though he meant to swat them away. When the crowd did not disperse he shouted the same phrase out again, lightly pushing people away from the ducks and towards the tent. Slowly, people began to move.

"Our show begins in minutes! You must hurry. Voler! Voler!" he shouted, pushing the dispersing crowd in the general direction of the entrance. Seemingly satisfied with his herding abilities, he swung quickly on one foot and marched lightly back to the team, swinging his arms and grinning broadly.

"They swarm you like flies, no?" he said in accented English, coming to a stop in front of Wildwing. The leader smiled cautiously.

"It happens a lot." he said, with a small shrug.

"It is the curse of talent and fame monsieur, I know this well." He shook his head almost woefully, sandy blond hair falling into his eyes.

Wildwing frowned. "I'm sorry, but who are you?"

The man looked up at him in amazement, then looked down, motioning to his attire as he did so.

"Je suis insulte! You cannot guess?" he rebuked.

Wildwing and the others took a long look at his blue shoes, his purple striped pants which gleamed and sparkled slightly in the evening sunset, and finally to his coat. It was a perfectly fitted long coat, made of rich red velvet and indulgently embroidered with gold thread. Somehow it managed to be both beautiful and gaudy. Standing behind Wildwing, Duke couldn't decided if it was in good taste or not.

"Sorry," Wildwing eventually answered. "Unless it has something to do with hockey we're out of our league."

The man was somewhat crestfallen as he continued to motion to his attire. "You have not even one guess to offer?"

"Ringmaster." Nosedive piped up from the back of the team. They all turned to him in unison, a generalized expression of unbelief on their faces.

"What? So I looked it up before we came. Sue me." he huffed.

Nevertheless, the man looked appeased. "Indeed, indeed! You are most correct Monsieur Nosedive. You are now my favorite of your teammates. I am Andre. You must forgive me. When young Buzz told me of your desire to witness our humble show, I nearly jumped for joy at the thought."

"Speaking of, Buzz told us he would wait for us at the front entrance." Wildwing said.

"I'm here. Andrew gets excited. Sorry." Buzz said, peeking out from behind one of the canvas overhangs. Andre turned a reproachful glare at the boy.

"An-dre, it is An-dre little child."

Buzz rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Just because Lia calls you that doesn't mean I have to. And I was just telling the truth. You're too excited."

Andre frowned.

"I must be. If I were not, my performance would suffer and fail, the show would die, and we would all be digging through the trash to find a simple scrap of crusted bread to dip in our cold, generically-labeled, styrofoam-encased cups of coffee." Andre's voice rose as he spoke, the tone becoming almost that of a shriek by the time he ended. Buzz winced.

"I was just saying. Jeez, relax Andrew. You're scaring the aliens."

Andre glared once more at Buzz but seemed to heed his words as he stepped away from the team a few steps. "Ah, pardon, pardon." he said hurriedly, pulling back the flap Buzz stood next to and making a deep formal bow as he motioned them inside. "I welcome you most happily, please come and enjoy our wondrous feat of fantasy, the like of which an equal is not to be found."

The ducks threw each other a mutual look of 'what have we gotten ourselves into?" before filing past the high spirited ringmaster. The canvas flap appeared to be a private entrance of some sort, and the ducks caught their breaths as they entered and took in the full scope of the interior. The tent had become instantly transformed into a wonderland of blurred colors, melodic music, twinkling lights and a vaulted ceiling which seemed to stretch on forever. Like the outside, sheer streamers of every shade hung from the ceiling, wherever that was, and light glistened from the small sparkles sewn into the fabric.

Beside them Andre was grinning smugly. "Impressive, no?" he said.

"I wanna live here." Nosedive announced as he tried desperately to take in all the sights, sounds, and smells his senses were sending his overloaded brain.

"You will enjoy our show I think." Andre said, handing Buzz seven tickets and pointing towards a conspicuously empty row of seats about halfway up the stairs. "Sadly, our best seats were taken already, but your view will be a good one from there. Still, it is most regrettable. Hellbound thugs." he said, glaring at a row near the ring's edge. One of the occupants, a well-dressed young man, looked up from his seat and waved cheerily even as Andre made rude gestures at him with his left hand. "Bastard. Your mother was a goat!" he shouted as Buzz tried in vain to hold the ringmaster's hand down. The man continued to wave, and was now smiling.

"Andrew, cut it out will ya!" Buzz said. "He paid didn't he?"

Andre stopped his frantic gesturing and sighed in defeat. "Yes, yes, but he taunted me with his money." he said before standing straight, adjusting his coat meticulously and turning to descend the stairs.

"Taunted!" he shouted as he sailed effortlessly down the stairs and disappeared into a darkened backstage entrance.

Buzz shook his head then held the tickets up to the ducks. "Just as I promised! Lets go!" he said before bounding up the steep stairs and eagerly motioning the team into the row.

"S' what illegal substance was 'hat guy on?" Duke said as he took his seat next to Tanya.

Next to Mallory, Buzz grinned but waved his hands dismissively. "He's always like that. Lia says he has a, uh...artistic temperament. Yeah, that's it."

"Insane." Mallory non-so-subtly coughed into her hand.

"Nah, Andrew just doesn't like it when people tell him what to do on his turf." Buzz said.

"Ya talkin' 'bout the welcomin' committee down there on the floor?" Duke asked. The blond boy nodded.

"Yeah, I don't know what happened, but they got Andre all mad about something. Seem nice enough to me though." he said with a shrug.

Duke regarded the five men at the ringside. Four were quietly sitting, not talking but with their eyes glued to the stage as though the show were already started. The young man who had waved to Andre earlier was the only one of the bunch who seemed to have any life to him at all, his eyes darted from the stage to ceiling, then back to the audience. As his eyes wandered over to their row Duke could see an expression of slight bemusement on his face. Noticing Duke he smiled suddenly and gave another cheery wave before moving on with his observations.

"Well, they're polite I guess." he mumbled.

"Probably a fan." Nosedive said before eagerly waving down a snack vendor and relieving her of most of her stock.

"Ugh, Dive, that looks disgusting." Wildwing said.

The teenager looked up to his brother, his beak full of a strange fluffy pink substance which overflowed from every side. He smiled and held up a stick of the stuff. "Vant 'ome?" he said, taking another generous bite. Wildwing grimaced and held up his hand defensively.

"Pass."

"vat? Ve 'on't have 'is at the 'ond."

"And thank Ducaine for that. Just don't die okay?"

"vo'kay."

"So what do you guys think? Cool huh?" Buzz said, bouncing in his seat next to Wildwing as he waited for the show to start.

"Definitely different. Do all humans go to circuses?" Wildwing asked as he continued to hold up a refusing hand to Nosedive, who was shoving a stick of pink fluffiness in his general direction. Buzz thought for a moment then shrugged.

"Probably not all over the world, but a lot do in America. Regular circuses at least, not these." he said, motioning to the stage below them. Wildwing frowned.

"Why not?"

"Because this is more like the theater then a circus." came a familiar voice at the end of the aisle. They all turned to their left to see a small figure hunched under a gray blanket standing next to Grin. Beneath the hood they could see Lia peering out at them. Or at least Wildwing thought it was Lia. The girls face had been painted with several shades of blending blues, her eyes darkened and with tiny glints of metal arranged artistically around them. It made her green eyes stand out all the more. It was startling.

"Lia! What are you doing here? Isn't the show going to start?" Buzz asked from next to Wildwing. He jumped up from his seat and was in the process of stepping on the mallard's foot to get to her when Lia held out her hand for him to stop.

"Buzz, sit down. I only came out to be sure everyone found their way to their seats." she said. Her brother's lips turned down in a mock pout.

"You didn't think I could do it?"

Lia rolled her eyes.

"Truth be told, I was worried more about Andre. He seemed so out of sorts earlier I was worried he would forget about the seats. What happened?" she asked.

Buzz shrugged. "I don't know, some rich guys bought out the prime row seats that were left. They probably said something snobby to him or something." he said as he reached over Wildwing and attempted to snag some candy from a resisting Nosedive.

Lia frowned and looked towards the row lining the center ring.

"Who?"

After lifting Buzz over his seat so he could duke it out better with his brother, Wildwing pointed towards the group of men, all of whom by now had their backs to the ducks.

"Down there." he said. Lia studied them for a moment.

"Lia?" Buzz asked, distracted from his struggle for Nosedives candy. Lia continued her study as Buzz became impatient. "Lia?" he asked again. She started slightly but looked back at her brother. She smiled.

"Sorry Buzz." she said as the lights around them suddenly dimmed. "Oh, there's my cue. Enjoy the show." she said to the ducks and raced down the steps, the gray blanket tucked around her, effectively keeping the rest of her costume hidden. She disappeared into the dark recesses beneath the stage just as the music began.

Duke leaned across Nosedive to Wildwing. "What'd'ya think that was all 'bout?" he asked.

Wildwing shrugged his shoulders and the older mallard settled back into his seat as lights flashed and the music intensified. Might as well enjoy the show.

The circus turned out to be quite entertaining. The acrobats were talented and daring, making the show more exciting by making it look as though they could be in danger of falling or crashing at any moment. Andre, aka 'The Ringmaster', as well as the clowns interacted regularly with the audience, flirting with the women, playing pranks on their male companions, and generally entertaining the rest of the crowd. Andre, at one point during the evening, tried to persuade a very reluctant Tanya out of her seat, but to no avail. Tanya, stammering her apologies, refused to be moved, and even Andre's dramatic mime of his heart being broken could not convince her to stray even an inch from the safety of her seat.

In the end he trod slowly down the stairs to the center ring, shoulder's dramatically slumped and forlorn as the audience made sympathetic noises on his behalf. Seeing Tanya's mortified face, Duke doubted they would ever get her out of the lab again. But her expression as Andre begged on his knees made it all the worthwhile.

Two hours later the show was beginning to come to an end and still the team had seen not hide nor hair of Lia. Wildwing had been starting to look nervously over to Buzz, worried that maybe his sister's act had been cut unexpectedly from the show, when Andre finally stepped back up to the center ring, announcing the final act. Something called the 'Maiden's Beacon'.

"Hey, hey, this is it! Pay attention everyone, here comes Lia!" Buzz announced to the ducks and was promptly shushed by his fellow audience member's. He stuck his tongue out but more or less stopped bouncing in his seat.

Two pure white cloth streamers flowed down from the ceiling and the tent went dark as a melodic tune suddenly filled the air. For a few moments there was only the sensuous music and the hushed whispers of the crowd. Then suddenly a brilliant blue flame swirled down the length of the streamers to ignite two large basins below. The basins flared and the audience could now make out the form of a lithe young woman sliding slowly down the streamers.

Much like her face, Lia was painted several hues of blue which swirled and blended to various degrees of intensity all about her body, but appearing to darken into patterns around her forearms. She wore a thin costume which wrapped tightly around her chest and then again at her hips with a few loose swaying strands at the front and back. But it soon became obvious why she needed only minimal covering.

She hung upside down, each of her legs wrapped around one of the white streamers. At first she twirled and swung on the streamers, her body much like a snake in it's fluid motion. The team ohhed and ahhed respectfully along with the audience. But then something happened that no one expected.

The music crescendoed and Lia's arms ignited. The blue flame ran swiftly up her arms to her elbows, swirling and writhing around her forearms in a sudden flash.

The crowd gasped as Wildwing and the team instinctively began to move from their seats, fearing disaster. But a small hand on Wildwing's arm stopped him from morphing into his battle gear.

"It's okay, it's okay! Calm down would ya?" he said to them all as the team looked to their leader then slowly sat back in their seats. "It's a part of the act. You're supposed to enjoy it."

Wildwing and Duke shared a dubious look before returning their gaze to the spectacle above. Lia had now slid halfway down the streamers, suspended thirty feet into the air, still upside down. The flame continued to flow around her arms, but thanks to some sort of precaution did not seem to burn her. She twisted her body so the streamers would twirl in tight circles, and as she spun the blue flames danced in circle around her. Occasionally she would send out a flare towards the audience, all of whom would gasp and then laugh nervously as the flame dissipated into thin air.

Grasping the streamers she pulled herself upright, ascending a few feet before completely letting go and falling to within ten feet of the un-netted floor. She spun again then climbed once more, writhing her body in such a way that it almost looked as though she were floating up and down the white cloth. Oddly though, throughout this the fire at her arms continued to burn, but it never seemed to even touch the fabric or Lia's arms for that matter.

Watching studiously from her seat, Tanya was enthralled. Her eyes studied the flames carefully, trying to puzzle out the trick of it. By the time Lia had finally descended the streamers and was taking her bows with un-flaming appendages, she still didn't have an answer. She squirmed in her seat in an effort to keep from bounding down the stairs and taking her omni-tool to the stage.

The audience was extremely appreciative of the performance and Wildwing chuckled as Lia noticeably dodged a few well-aimed flowers from the crowd. One young man in particular seemed to be taken with the young acrobat and stepped boldly over the ringside, a long-stemmed yellow rose in hand. It appeared to be the well dressed young man who had inadvertently offended Andre a few hours before. He made a slight bow and smiled as he muttered a few words, offering the flower to Lia as Andre rushed out into the ring. Andre appeared to be making a show of running the man off stage, and the audience cheered as the young man held up his hands in appeasement, then quickly grasped and kissed Lia's hand before vaulting over the ring.

Wildwing watched as Lia simply stood there, not moving, but staring wide-eyed at the man who had exited the stage. As the he reached his companions they all rose from their seats and began to file towards the exit. Andre rushed to Lia's side and made a show wrapping his arm around her and waving his fist menacingly offstage. This caused another uproar of laughter amongst the audience.

"What's wrong with Lia?" Buzz asked aloud. Wildwing frowned as the same thought ran through his mind. She continued to stand like a statue, her eyes wide and bright, but unmoving. Fortunately, thanks to Andre's antics, no one seemed to be noticing. Finally, after a few moments and more than a little theatrical shaking on Andre's part, she snapped out of whatever trance she had been in. They took a final bow together and filed off stage. The closing music cued and the lights came up as people began the customary stretching before moving for the exit.

Buzz scrambled from his seat and down the row, inadvertently stepping on most of the teams feet as he moved.

""Oww! Hey little dude, what's the hurry?" Nosedive protested as he gathered up his remaining junk food and shook his foot out.

Buzz turned as he moved out into the aisle. "Come on, don't you guys want to see the backstage?"

Tanya perked up in attention. Here was her chance to get a good look at that set. Maybe she could figure out how they resisted the flames. It certainly wouldn't hurt to have that kind of knowledge in the teams arsenal. She rose from her seat, scooting around Grin and joining Buzz.

"I'll come." she announced, much to the surprise of her team.

Wildwing frowned. "I don't know..." he hesitated.

"Please Wildwing? I promised them I would bring you back." Buzz whined, hopping nervously from one foot to the other as the rest of the team looked to each other.

Finally Duke, rising with a wide grin on his beak, turned to the rest of the team. "Come on guys, we should head on down." He grunted as Mallory elbowed his ribs as he passed.

"I know where your mind is heading." she hissed. He simply shrugged as he moved to join Buzz.

"I ain't gonna deny it sweetheart." he said, the memory of scantily clad acrobats dancing in his head as he deftly maneuvered his way out into the aisle.

Wildwing and Nosedive looked at each other briefly before joining them and Mallory finally caved when the blond boy turned puppy dog eyes on her.

"Someone has to keep an eye on the dirty old man." she muttered as she rose.

"I shall remain and await your return." Grin answered when Buzz asked. Giving the giant a once over, Buzz decided it was probably for the best. Al had taken him to a couple of Lia's shows before she retired from the circuit last year, and he knew from personal experience how cramped it could get down there. And the ducks were not small people. Even Mallory, the smallest of the team, stood taller than Lia. At five foot four, Lia was one of the taller female performers.

A tide of heat, sound, and the scent of sweat washed over Wildwing as he followed Buzz into the large but bustling room below the center stage. The energy and fervor was not all that unlike the craziness which often accompanied his own team after a game. Except here, the energy was supplied not by crazed fans, but by the very people who had completed two hours of ruthlessly flawless acrobatic performance. No one seemed in danger of exhaustion however, as a couple of the acrobats spotted Buzz and his retinue. Suddenly the ducks were set upon by a cascade of acrobats, technicians, and of course, clowns, all in various stages of undress.

"_Maintain eye contact, maintain eye contact._" Wildwing repeated to himself as the crowd pressed in around them. Again, he was grateful his feathers hid his heated face. Duke on the other hand was looking particularly pleased with the situation. Nosedive didn't seem to be complaining either. Mallory on the other hand, was a sight to see. Unlike the hockey fans who normally had a healthy amount of fear for her, the two brave and half-dressed males who stood at her sides seemed unaffected by her surliness. As a result, the redhead had become a living statue, much to the amusement of her unchosen companions.

"Voler! Voler! Are you insects too?" A familiar voice shouted out into the crowd. Wildwing looked up gratefully as Andre pushed his way through the crowd, trying to give them some breathing room.

"Ah, give it up Andrew, we all know that's not a real accent." someone in the crowed yelled out.

"If your French then I'm Queen Elizabeth the first." another shouted.

"You certainly bear a resemblance." Andre retorted. The crowd laughed, but was good natured enough to give the team some room as Andre escorted them back down the stairs.

"You enjoyed the show, yes?" he said as they all delved deeper into the crowd.

Wildwing nodded. "To be honest, I was impressed."

Andre grinned wide. "As you should. I do not pick up untalented swine."

"That's right, nothing but the best quality pork down here." yelled a clown lounging on nearby chair called out.

"Andre, you really should pay attention to what you're saying." said Lia, emerging from one of the thin cloth hangings which seemed to serve as makeshift dressing rooms. She was still in costume, but had let her painted hair out. It fell like a long blue cowl behind her shoulders.

Andre held out his arms and embraced her. "Ah, the star of the hour! May she shine over us always." he exclaimed. Lia returned his hug but frowned up at him.

"The Maiden's Beacon isn't my act anymore Andre."

Andre threw her a mischievous glance. "Ah, yes. Forgive me. I forget many things."

"Andre, I meant it when I said I wasn't coming back. I have different responsibilities now. Besides, I don't think Maria would be to happy to hear you calling me the star of her act." Lia said cautiously.

Andre rolled his eyes and looked over to Wildwing and the others. The others who were left that is. Which mainly meant Tanya. Duke and Nosedive were otherwise occupied with a flirtatious circus crew. Mallory continued her impersonation of a wooden plank.

"She invents the impossible and then wipes her hands of it. Such a frustrating child." he said. Tanya stepped a bit closer to Lia.

"S-speaking of impossible, how d-did you d-do that?" she asked.

Lia smiled but Andre laughed outright.

"Ah, you approach a taboo subject mademoiselle. Lia has created her own small cult of secrecy regarding the Maiden's Beacon. Lowly peasants such as ourselves are not privy to such wonders." he said.

"Ensuring it's continued success. Maria will never leave this group Andre, you know that better than anyone." Lia replied.

"Yes, but look at what trouble I have when she decides to catch herself the plague. I do not see why she cannot train an understudy."

"She has the flu, not the black death. And those were the conditions we agreed upon."

Andre stuck his tongue out at her and then turned to Tanya. "If you can pry her secrets from her mademoiselle, I applaud you. She plays her cards entirely too close. Try as I might, the secret of the blue fire's beacon is lost to me."

"Andrew just doesn't like anyone but him having secrets." Buzz piped up as the man swiped the back of his head.

"Andre, it is Andre!" he huffed before turning his back on them. He was soon engulfed by his crew, waving his hands and bossing them about as they poked fun at him. Lia shook her head in dismay as she stared after him.

"Someday a disgruntled Frenchman is going to shoot him for misrepresentation." she mumbled before turning back to Tanya and Wildwing.

"So you enjoyed our attempt at entertainment?" she asked.

Wildwing grinned. "Everything but the food."

"It was f-f-fascinating. How did you k-keep the flames from b-burning you?" Tanya asked eagerly. Lia shook her head.

"Sorry, trade secret. Andre wasn't exaggerating. But would you like to see the set? I think it's still up."

Tanya's bright eyes behind her glasses was all the answer that was needed. With Buzz at her side, Lia led the inquisitive mechanic and the tall goalie up and out of the room, cries of protest at their wake. One cursory glance at his brother and Duke told Wildwing they weren't leaving anytime soon. Towards the back of the room three of the male performers were trying to convince a reluctant Mallory to drink from a dusty bottle. He shuddered to think of his weapon's specialist drunk, but left her behind anyway, not really wanting to see what happened next.

The center ring had a peaceful quality to it now. The crowd had made it to the parking lot, and the only other people in the stands were the emerging cleaning crew. Tanya hurried ahead eagerly to inspect the blue streaked linens hanging from the ceiling, while Wildwing, Lia, and Buzz looked on.

"I see the paint comes off." Wildwing commented, pointing up to the soiled cloth above.

"It's a problem." Lia agreed.

"It used to be worse though." Buzz said. Wildwing looked down at him expectantly.

"She use to do the act in nothing but the body paint she's wearing now. Then one night too much of it wiped off and---omph!!" he said as Lia clamped her hands over his mouth and even under the paint Wildwing could see she was turning red.

"He doesn't need to know about that." she said quickly. Her brows knit together. "Come to think of it, how do you know? That was at least a year before you found me."

Buzz pried her hands off his mouth and grinned. "Andrew."

"Of course."

"And Al. Of course that was before we even knew who you were."

"......well, that's awkward."

Trying to ignore the mental image which had just sprung up in his mind, Wildwing pointed to where Tanya was poking around, trying to catch what she had missed when Lia had preformed. "So, how long have you been doing this?" he asked as Buzz squirmed his way out of Lia's grasp and ran over to join Tanya.

Lia inwardly praised his attempt to change the subject. "Almost three years. Andre found me when I was fourteen and the training began a few months after that. He's ruthless, might I add."

"Type A personality?"

"Double A. Sometimes triple. But he took me in, cared for me. There wasn't much I wouldn't have done."

"And before that?"

Lia looked over at Buzz who watched as Tanya peered at the cloth streamer's with help from a multifaceted tool on her wrist. "It was a long time ago." she said eventually.

They watched as Buzz laughed at a particular tool which popped out suddenly from Tanya's wristband. The two geniuses investigated the set with a kind of playful determination that bordered on joy.

"Can I ask you another question?" Wildwing asked suddenly. Lia nodded, but did not turn to him.

"Who was man with the flower earlier?"

Lia was silent for a moment, and Wildwing looked over at her. She was watching as Buzz attempted to climb the white cloth's. He made it about five feet before sliding back down and collapsing in a heap. He clamored back to his feet with Tanya's help and she chuckled lightly to herself as he attempted to scale the streamer's again. Glancing over to Wildwing, who waited silently, she let out a tired sigh.

"He was no one." she finally answered.

"Really?" he pressed.

"....No. Not really."

Wildwing watched her for a few moments before turning back to enjoy the spectacle which was Buzz and Tanya.

"You know," he said slowly. "we're pretty good at helping people out. Just so your aware."

Lia smiled, but as she turned to him Wildwing noticed it did not quite reach her eyes. "Buzz keeps reminding me you're the good guys. Thanks, but we'll be fine."

"Regardless, the offer stays open. If you need it."

Lia nodded silently as a woman from the cleaning crew stepped out onto the stage.

"Sorry, but we need to start taking care of this area next." she said.

Wildwing motioned over to Tanya and Buzz. "We'll get out of your way." he said as they all made their way back to where they had come from.

He eyed the entrance warily.

"What's wrong?" Lia asked.

He sighed. "If Mallory's drunk, can I leave her here?" he finally asked.

_Reviews most welcome :)_


	3. Chapter 3

_Greetings. Just a heads up. With the next installment this fic will go to a __**M rating**__ just to be on the safe side for future chapters. So if you need to find it, you know where to go. Strange, this fic seemed to just do its own thing. How unruly._

_**Thanks again** to to those of you who have reviewed. Mainly Mad-Eyed Owl and southernlady :) Let me know what you think out there you guys! Your opinions matter, especially to me :) _

_Disclaimer: Mighty Ducks--- Disney's. Not mine. Drat._

**Chapter 3**

Early the next morning, fog was just beginning to rise above the tallest of Anaheim's buildings when Lia woke to the disturbing sound of a smoke detector's screech. After a brief wrestling match with the blankets, her feet finally found the cold hardwood floor and began moving as fast as half-asleep feet are able on a chilly morning. Rounding the hallway corner she slid into the kitchen to find her blond brother frantically throwing water into a flaming toaster oven.

"It went nuclear!" he yelled by way of explanation as he prepared to douse the appliance with another glass of water.

Lia grabbed the cup from him, ran back into the hallway to flip the circuit breakers, then returned to the kitchen. Pulling two flaming sausages from the toaster ovens depths with a pair of tongs, she doused them with the water from Buzz's cup and held them up for inspection.

"Many things can't be safely cooked on a rack. Sausages happen to be one of them." she chided as she tossed them into the garbage. Buzz's shoulders slumped as he stared at the charred toaster oven.

"I wanted to cook breakfast." he murmured.

"Oh, it's cooked." she said, holding up the oven for inspection. She looked over at the clock. "Time of death, 7:12 am." she announced as she placed it back on the counter and threw him an exasperated look.

"Buzz, I know you want to learn how to cook, but could you please wait until I can help you? With how old this building is we could have ended up looking like those sausages in no time flat. Not to mention this is our third toaster oven so far."

"But, I wanted to surprise you. Cheer you up." he said quietly. Lia's face softened.

"Why would you need to cheer me up? Do I look sad?" she asked.

Buzz shook his head. "No, it's just, well...last night. When you saw that guy, you know, the one with the flower? You didn't look very happy. You didn't look happy all night, even when you were talking to Wildwing."

Lia stood silently for a moment before smiling broadly and ruffling her brothers sleep tossed hair. "Who knew you were so sweet? But don't worry, I'm happy."

Buzz looked speculative. "You're happy?"

"Of course. What do I have to be unhappy about?"

"But, that guy..."

Lia waved the protest aside. "He startled me, that's all. Don't worry about it Buzz. Besides we have a problem."

"Like what?"

Lia sighed and pointed to the blackened box on the counter. "Like how were going to explain the death of another toaster oven to Al. His generosity will only go so far."

"Sorry."

"Well, I guess we'll deal with it when we see him. In the meantime, how desperate are you for sausages?"

Buzz's face lit up. "We're going out?"

"It might be better than breathing in smoke. Besides, it's spring break for me now, why not have a little fun?"

Buzz made a face. "God, you need a life Lia. Going out with your kid brother shouldn't be considered fun at your age."

"My perspectives are different than most."

"I'd say."

"Do you want breakfast or not?"

Buzz grinned. "Sure. Can we stop by the Pond and say hi to the ducks after?"

Lia groaned. "Buzz, that would be three times in two days. You're becoming obsessed."

"So that's a yes?"

Lia glanced over at the bookshelves then turned back to her brother and let out another sigh. "Okay, we'll go. But we're not staying long, right?" she yelled to him as he started running down the hall.

"Right, sure, whatever!"

She shook her head as she padded across the cold floor and removed a thick book from the shelf and smiled. "Might as well bring a peace offering." she muttered softly to herself.

**************

"Nosedive thwarts the evil wall of Wildwing once again! The crowd chants praises to my greatness!" Nosedive yelled out as Wildwing bent to retrieve the puck which had narrowly sailed past his defenses for the second time that morning. Under the mask he grinned as he threw the puck back into play. Corralling it with his stick, the younger Flashblade brother looked up into the stadium seating and frowned.

"Or at least they would if they were here. Man, off-season sucks!" he announced as Wildwing positioned himself for another assault.

Nosedive was becoming quite the powerhouse when it came to launching pucks into the net. As much as he hated to admit it, sometimes it hurt Wildwing to try and stop the little black bullets his brother sent his way. Considering Canard was the last one who could launch a puck hard enough to hurt, that was saying something.

"Keep practicing Dive and you'll knock them off their seats when they come back." Wildwing said.

"Don't I always?"

"In your daydreams little bro."

"My own brother won't support my dreams. How insulting." Nosedive said as he unexpectedly launched a puck towards the goal. He wasn't paying attention however. The puck glanced off the goalpost and sailed over the protective glass barriers with room to spare. A second later the sound of surprised yelling had the Flashblade brothers tearing off their helmets and skating for the rinks edge.

"It's official Buzz, they don't want to see us, lets go home." came a familiar voice.

Wildwing and Nosedive glanced at each other nervously. "Opps." Nosedive whispered.

Wildwing took a more direct approach. "Buzz, Lia, you guys okay?"

Much to the relief of both of the ducks, Buzz soon came bounding out of the shadows of the stadium hallway which led outside. Behind him came Lia, who held the thick book she carried above her head and was glancing cautiously around the stadium as though she expected another bombing.

"Sorry." Nosedive said. Wildwing pulled down the glass plating as Buzz ran up to the rinks edge, looking happier than he should considering he just barely had avoided a trip to the hospital. Lia soon joined him, holding out a battered puck out to Wildwing.

"There are less brutal ways of telling us to take a hike." she said as she dropped it into his gloved hand. He smiled sheepishly.

"Some days the pucks just have a mind of their own. Besides, it could have been worse. Last year we actually hit Phil with one."

Lia frowned. "Your manager? That seems extreme. What did he do to you?"

Nosedive snorted. "What hasn't he done?"

"It was an accident, just like now." Wildwing explained.

"The only difference is we would've actually felt bad if we had hit you guys." Nosedive said and ducked as his brother moved to whack the back of his head. He turned to Buzz. "Couldn't get enough of us huh?" he asked, plopping his helmet on Buzz's head. The boy grinned.

"Nah, but Lia wanted to come so bad I had to come." he said, smiling innocently up at his sister.

She stared at him wide-eyed then turned her reddening face to Wildwing. "He lies." she said.

Wildwing grinned. "As a fellow older sibling, I sympathize." he said before turning to Buzz. "Since you're here, do you want to feel what it's like to play hockey like the pros?"

Buzz's face lit up in excitement as Wildwing reached over and easily lifted the boy over the walls edge and gave him Nosedive's stick. He handed his own to his brother. "Why don't you teach him how to launch those rockets of yours Dive." he said.

Buzz slipped and stumbled his way to the center of the rink and looked expectantly over to Nosedive, who looked up at his brother with an annoyed expression. "Oh sure, make me babysit."

Wildwing shrugged. "Your the one who almost killed him. Go make it up to him."

"Fine. But don't blame me if he, oh, I don't know, maybe accidentally hits you on the head with one of the pucks. Rookies make mistakes like that you know." Nosedive said before skating over to the eagerly awaiting young human.

Lia shook her head. "We didn't come expecting you to entertain us you know."

Wildwing looked over to their two brothers. "Don't worry about it. This is a good lesson for Dive. The kid's been getting a little too preoccupied with his fame and popularity lately. I don't want his head getting too swelled."

"Well, thanks. Buzz just about worships you guys. The fact you don't brush him off means the world to him."

"He's a good kid. Annoyingly smart sometimes, but overall a good kid."

Lia laughed. "Can't help that I suppose. Although, I admit those brains of his get on my nerves sometimes when I'm studying."

Wildwing lifted one of his brows. "Oh?"

"Last week for example. I was preparing for the midterms before classes let out for spring break. The little twerp comes up behind me, looks at the text for maybe ten seconds, then points to the middle of the page and announces the book is wrong. Mind you, this book was written by one of the most successful cardiac surgeons of the twentieth century. Didn't bother him one bit, he still maintained it was wrong." she said, watching as Nosedive pulled Buzz back onto his feet. The boy just couldn't seem to stay upright on the ice.

"Was he?" Wildwing asked after a bit. Lia looked up at him.

"Hmmm?"

"The surgeon. Was he wrong?"

"Yes and no. He was trying to make a point but didn't use the best example. That's a dangerous thing to do in medical study."

Wildwing nodded. "So you're going to be a doctor?" he asked.

"That's the plan." she said.

"Your nineteen right? From what I understand that's a pretty young age to be in medical school already. You must have some brains yourself."

Lia simply shrugged. "Enough to get by I suppose. Buzz is the real prodigy of the family. Which is why I worry about him. Prodigy's don't live happy lives."

Wildwing glanced over, concerned at her words. She didn't look too happy herself. "Sounds like you speak from experience."

She kept her eyes down, drawing small circles on the back of the book she carried distractedly. "I just know." she eventually said.

"I see." he said, even though he didn't. After a few minutes of watching Nosedive teaching Buzz how to properly hold a hockey stick he turned back to her and changed the subject. "The team really enjoyed the show last night. Although, I'm not sure if Tanya will ever get within fifty feet of your pal Andre again."

Looking up from her hands, she smiled. "Poor girl. Andre does like to put people on the spot. He calls it a gift."

"Well, he's got a gift for showmanship, I'll give him that. The way he handled that stage-jumper last night was pretty quick thinking."

Lia looked back down at her book. "True." she said softly.

"You going to tell me who the guy was?" he asked, trying to keep his voice casual.

Once again, Lia threw him the smile that never reached her bright green eyes. "I told you not to worry about us."

He shrugged. "Yeah, well you're within my field of vision now, so I'm going to worry. I do that. Ask anyone."

"Maybe we should step out of your field then." she said quietly.

"Don't do that." he responded, keeping his voice just as low.

They stared at each other for a moment before both of them simultaneously grinned. Wildwing chuckled.

"Oh boy, not good. Two stubborn people facing off." he said. "Look, all I'm saying is whatever is going on, don't face it alone, okay?"

Lia was silent but had a small smile on her face. Eventually she shook her head, as though trying to erase the last few minutes from her mind like an etch-a-sketch, and held out the book she had been holding in her hands.

"Here." she said. "I remembered you were looking at this."

Wildwing removed his thick gloves and turned it over in his hands. It was the book on twentieth century earth history he had been looking at the day they had taken Lia and Buzz home.

"Thanks. I was going to try and find this at the store but I couldn't remember the exact title." he said appreciatively.

"It should give you a good basic overview. If you want something more specific after that I have a few volumes which should do the job." she said as Nosedive skated over with Buzz perched on his shoulders. Wildwing nodded as he flipped absentmindedly through the pages.

"So are you going to become a world famous hockey star anytime soon?" she teased as Buzz stepped gingerly onto the rink wall's edge and sat down in front of her. He rolled his eyes.

"Sure, as long I as don't have to go onto the ice." he said glumly. Nosedive patted him on the back.

"It's not that bad." he countered. Buzz looked up at him levelly and Nosedive grinned. "Okay, I'll tell the truth. You suck."

"Nosedive!" Lia and Wildwing both cried out.

"He's right Lia." Buzz answered, a bit more life coming back into his face. "I may be a genius, but it looks like there's two things I absolutely can't do. Cook and play hockey."

"At least on ice. Man, for being your brother Lia, he sure has no sense of balance." Nosedive said. This time Wildwing succeeded in making contact with the back of his head.

"I think all the sports genes in the family went to Lia. Not that I'd remember." Buzz said, kicking up his feet and showering his sister with cold water from the rink. She flicked him on the forehead.

"No, I think any athletic ability I might have is because of Andre. I was a real klutz before I joined up with him. He used to go on legendary tirades lamenting my ability to trip or fall over just about anything." she said.

Nosedive rolled his eyes. "Yeah, like I believe that. You sure you can't tell us how you pulled off the fire show last night?"

"Sorry, like I said, trade secret."

Nosedive frowned then threw his arm around Buzz's shoulder's. "Fine then, I'll just pry the info out of your little bro here. What do ya say kid? I'll teach you how to skate."

"Hey, she doesn't tell me anything either. I can't help you." he said quickly.

Nosedive looked skeptical. "Is that so?"

"My sister likes to be mysterious." Buzz said and was surprised when Wildwing tried to choke down his laughter. Lia frowned.

"That's not true."

Wildwing laughed outright. She crossed her arms as she glared at him. "It's not." she insisted.

Wildwing held up his hands in surrender. "Whatever you say."

Nosedive watched wide-eyed as his brother tried to smother his laughs and at the same time fend off an annoyed Lia. This was new. Usually it was the other way around, as in Wildwing was annoyed and he had to get him lighten up. Glancing over to Buzz he grinned.

"Hey, you want to see my Rockman collection?" he asked. Buzz's eyes brightened immediately.

"Are you kidding?" he said as he jumped off the wall onto the dry floor. It still didn't stop him from stumbling forward. Lia caught his shoulders.

"Buzz, I don't think..." she started, but Nosedive interrupted.

"I have the complete series. Including the blue cornered first issue." he said. Buzz began jumping up and down.

"Oh my god, you're serious? The blue-cornered first? That one's like, ultra-rare!" he said, grabbing Nosedive by the arm and beginning to tug impatiently. "Let's go, come on! I gotta see it."

Nosedive threw a mock helpless look at Lia as he vaulted over the wall and began walking to the teams locker room with an ecstatic Buzz.

"Any authority I may have," Lia began. "completely usurped by a comic book."

Wildwing followed his brothers example and vaulted easily over the wall, landing at her side. "I don't get it either, but we might as well follow them. I'll show you around our base while they go crazy."

Lia watched him go for a moment before eventually sighing in defeat and following him into the locker room. "I give up." she muttered to herself.

Wildwing turned. "Did you say something?" he asked as he unceremoniously shucked off his hockey gear, stripping down to the simple set of loose dark blue sweats he normally wore during practice. Lia frowned at him.

"I said I give up. It looks as though I'm stuck in your field whether I want to be or not." she said.

Wildwing smiled. "Come on. I'm sure Tanya would love to pick your brain a little more about that stunt you pulled last night."

Lia groaned. "How many times do I have to insist I'm not telling anyone anything?"

Wildwing pressed a series of numbers on a keypad built into the wall and waited as a thick panel slid away. He waved his arm to the large lift behind it.

"Ladies first." he said.

"You're as bad as your brother." she muttered as she stepped in. Wildwing followed.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he asked innocently as he pushed another button inside. Lia looked up at him and shook her head despondently.

"No, I was wrong. You're worse." she said as the door slid close.

**********************

Two hundred miles away, high in the overcast Sierra Nevada's, a thin, middle-aged man sat contentedly in front of an inviting fire. It was fast approaching noon, but he was still wearing his sleeping attire with a brown, expensive-looking robe fastened securely at the waist. His face was drawn, skin pallid, and his nearly colorless hair hung limply down to his shoulder's. If a meeting had been scheduled for his corporation, he would have gone through the trouble of tying it back, but fortune had smiled upon him this day and he reveled in fact he could simply rest his weary body.

He stared at the fire intently, and if someone had been in the room with him, they would have immediately seen why this seemingly weak man commanded such power and respect. His eyes, unlike his flaccid body, were invigorating and alive. The sheer ruthless intelligence of his gaze had frightened many; young, old, and everything in between. Rook was not a man to be crossed, and to underestimate him would cost you dearly.

A young servant walked quietly into the room, a soft knock on one of the sitting area's walls the only sign of his entry.

"Yes?" Rook said gently, keeping his gaze on the fire.

The servant approached silently and knelt at Rook's side, a small cell phone in his outstretched palm. "A call for you sir."

Rook smiled and gingerly lifted the phone from his hand. "Thank you Cameron. A cup of coffee, if you would?"

"Certainly sir."

Rook waited until Cameron was out of sight, then flipped the small phone up. "Yes?"

A moment later he smiled ruefully.

"I see. And how was your intrusion taken?"

A pause. He chuckled. "I suspect so. It has been awhile hasn't it? And you've changed."

As he listened his brows creased together slightly.

"No, no. I would prefer to ease her into this if I can. Willing cooperation would be best, and my timetable will allow it. Have you prepared our next gift?"

He frowned. "I don't accept excuses, even from my own flesh and blood."

He listened quietly for the next minute and slowly his face relaxed and his sanguine smile returned once more. He laughed. "Is that so? How interesting. Well, she's always had a gift for the unorthodox. It was part of the reason why I chose her. Send the gift there and then wait."

"No, leave the boy alone. You ignore him unless I give you leave, understood?"

"Very well. I wait in anticipation of your next report."

He closed the phone just as Cameron was returning with a delicate cup and saucer, a thin line of steam emerging from the rim. He set it down on the polished log table. Rook took a long sip and smiled up at the boy.

"If only my son could preform his duties as flawlessly as you do." he said, returning the cup to the saucer. Cameron suppressed a smile and bowed slightly to the older man.

"Mr. Corvus has a much more difficult position than myself sir."

Rook stared into the fire. "Does he now? I suppose it's a matter of opinion."

Cameron took a small step forward. "If I may make an inquiry sir?"

"Of course."

"Are your plans progressing as smoothly as you hoped?"

Rook winked at him and took another sip of coffee. "Smoothly? Not as such, no. But interesting. I am certain the next few days will be very amusing."

"Then I'm glad for you sir."

"Thank you. Oh, and Cameron?"

"Yes sir?"

"Have we heard back from London yet?"

"Indeed sir. The man you requested has been eliminated."

"Wonderful. He was one of my last obstacles."

"More coffee?"

"Please."

**_Reviews most welcome :)_**

**_P.S. Is it bad to enjoy writing bad guys more? I wonder._**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Greetings. I present chapter four to you on a proverbial silver platter. Enjoy._**

**_Once again, I throw out my overt request for reviews. .opinions._**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own the Mighty Ducks. I refuse to even entertain the idea of going up against Disney. Kind of gives me fearful shivers up and down my spine. Just because they have the cute and princessy image doesn't mean they won't crush legal offenders without mercy._**

**Chapter 4**

Duke whistled softly to himself as he walked back towards the Pond. It had been a good day so far. A good night too, for that matter. The rest of the team had missed his presence the previous evening as he had passed the night with one of the performer's he had hit it off with backstage. The evening had been...invigorating, to say the least. Hopefully he and his new lady friend would be able to meet up at least a few more times while the show was still in town. It was nice to be able to wake up next to someone again. He hadn't realized how much he missed the feeling.

The round walls of the Pond loomed overhead as he approached, and he grinned good-naturedly. He loved hockey, and he loved the Pond, but not for the first time he wondered when they were going to try and lead a more normal life on this planet. Their last face-off with Draganus had resulted in his complete disappearance for a solid three months. There was a good chance he was caught back into dimensional limbo permanently. And still they lived as though they expected him to attack at any moment.

Three months of this was okay. Even six. But the day Draganus was gone for a whole year, he sure as hell was going to leave the bunker-like setting of the Pond and find a real house out there somewhere. If they couldn't get back home, then he would find a way to make a home here. Mallory and her military ethics be damned, on that day he was going to convince the others to do the same.

He welcomed the cooling air of the Pond with a grateful sigh as he tread the familiar path down to the locker rooms. His pace slowed as he spotted a young man with a small parcel standing at the rinks edge, looking slightly lost. He looked familiar somehow, but he couldn't place him. Duke watched him for a minute before stepping out of the shadows, purposefully creating enough sound to make his presence known. The young man turned quickly, and relief spread over his features as he saw who it was.

"Can I help ya?" Duke asked.

"Yes, thank you. I was hoping you could deliver this for me." he said, holding the parcel out. Duke eyed it speculatively.

"Hate t' burst your bubble kid, but it's against our team's policy t' accept gifts. Especially gifts in small, unmarked packages. Ya understand?" he said gently.

The young man smiled and Duke suddenly remembered where he knew him from. It was the same man who had smiled and waved to him the night before. The one who had jumped the stage just so he could hand a flower to Lia.

"It's you." Duke said. He nodded.

"I know this is a bit unorthodox, but I could really use your help. The lovely performer at the circus last night caught my eye..."

Duke chuckled. "Yeah, I noticed."

"And so did most everyone else." the man agreed sheepishly. "But I don't know her name, or where she lives, and of course no one at the circus will tell me. And well...I saw her talking to you and your team and I thought, perhaps, maybe you could...?"

He finished by holding up the parcel hopefully. Duke looked at his eager expression and sighed, then reached for the box. Grasping the lid, he looked back up at the would-be suitor.

"Ya understand I gotta...?" he said. The young man nodded.

"Of course. Here, it opens like this." he said, pushing the sides of the box gently as Duke lifted the lid and peered inside. His experienced eye took a good look and then put down the lid.

"What, no love note?" he asked.

"Pretty words were last night. Today it's simply presents."

"I see." Duke said. "Quite taken wit' her are ya?"

The young man smiled sanguinely. "She has become my mission."

Duke tucked the parcel under his arm and sighed. "Alright. Ya caught me on a particularly good day kid. I'll make sure she gets it. But you're on your own after 'dat got it?"

The man shook his hand happily. "Yes, of course. Your too kind. Thank you."

"Your welcome, Mr. uh...?"

"Corvus. Newton Corvus." he answered.

"Newton?" Duke repeated slowly.

Newton rolled his eyes. "I blame my father. Thanks again." he said as he moved for the door which led outside. He turned just before he left and gave Duke one of his trademark waves, then headed for the exit. Duke shook his head. Weird kid. He doubted he had a chance, but the romantic in the ex-thief balked at the idea of throwing the package out. Maybe this would win the girl over.

He doubted it, but hell, it was worth a shot. Stranger things had happened.

***********

"And last but not least, Drake One."

Lia craned her head to fully take in the massive computer screen and console, a maneuver which kinked her neck considerably. She rolled her head lazily towards Wildwing. "Seems a bit of an overkill."

The drake looked offended. "Besides Phil, your the first person to ever have the privilege of admiring our super computer, and that's the nicest thing you can say about it?"

"It's impressive overkill?" she tried again.

Wildwing sighed. "This is the last time I give a tour."

Lia returned her head to a more reasonable position, rubbing the back of her neck to get the kinks out. "Sorry." she said. "You really do have an impressive set up down here. There's one thing puzzling me though."

"And what's that?"

"How?" she asked. "How did you manage to clear this much space below a public arena in such a short amount of time? The foundations for this place alone should have taken months, if not years to lay."

Her tour guide shrugged. "Our technology is a bit better." He chuckled. "That and the fact we all had some pretty strong incentives."

"Incentives?"

Wildwing leaned back against Drake Ones console and crossed his arms at his chest. "Phil mainly. We were staying with him when we first arrived. And let me tell you, it was no picnic. Phil's apartment is small, tacky, and with six additional people, it was hellishly cramped. We all got on each others nerves. And then Mallory nearly decapitated our host."

Lia looked over at him. "Why?" she asked cautiously.

He smiled remorsefully. "For taking pictures of us sleeping, then trying to sell them."

"You're joking."

"Oh no I'm not. Thanks to good old Drake One here we're pretty sure we've recovered most of them, but I still fear the day a picture of me in nothing but my boxer's pops up in some tabloid."

"I think I understand now why you hit him with a puck."

Wildwing groaned and rubbed the bridge of his beak. "If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times, it was an accident."

"I don't think anyone would have blamed you if it was on purpose."

"Yeah, well, I won't deny the thought has crossed my mind. But, whether we like it or not, Phil was the first person to help us out when we were in a pretty vulnerable position. Granted, it was out of pure self interest, but he still took us in. It's hard to forget something like that." Wildwing reflected.

Lia considered his words for a moment. "I can imagine it would be." she began slowly. "Personal debts can be the hardest to repay, and nearly impossible to forget, even when you'd like to do nothing more than erase the memories completely."

Wildwing stared up her. "There you go again."

"What?"

He grinned. "There you go being all mysterious. You want to explain that last statement?"

His grin widened at her stubborn silence. "You know," he said slowly. "if you don't want people asking questions, you shouldn't give them so many things to be curious about."

She rolled her eyes, turning her back on him as she moved for the stairs. "I think your just making things up. I'm about the most uninteresting person you will ever meet."

"Sure you are." he said as he pushed himself off Drake's console and followed her down. She was heading for the hallway.

"Where's Nosedive's room? Buzz and I need to get going." she asked, not bothering to turn around.

Wildwing jumped the last few steps and jogged up to her side. "You're leaving? Tanya's not even back yet."

Lia wheeled on him. "As lovely as an interrogation sounds, I'm afraid today's not the day. Now where, in this monstrosity of a lair, is he?"

Wildwing pointed down the hall. "Third door down on the left."

"Thank you." she huffed in exasperation, and turned. He followed.

"You're not you know." he said to her back. She paused for a moment. When he didn't elaborate she sighed, then turned and faced him.

"I'm not what?"

"Uninteresting." he answered, stepping forward. He bent down closer. "I think you're very interesting."

Feeling more than a bit out of her element with the drake's beak only a few inches from the tip of her nose, Lia swallowed nervously and leaned back on her heels. For some reason it didn't occur to her to move her feet. Sensing her discomfort, Wildwing straightened back up and stepped back, leaning against the wall across from Nosedive's room to allow for some breathing room.

"Sorry." he said. Lia's cautious gaze never left him. He sighed. "It's just that there's so much you're not telling, and it's kind of driving me mad."

He thought she would never speak, but eventually her soft voice echoed in the hallway. "Some things, some memories, they're......sometimes it's better not to re-visit the past." she said.

There was something about her manner. The way she hunched over with her arms crossed protectively at her chest, how her voice fluctuated, or the fact she finally lowered her eyes. Something about the moment made Wildwing forget about digging for answer's he knew were there.

"Lia..." he said softly. She shook her head.

"People who are good at asking questions aren't always comfortable with the answers. Please Wildwing, no more interrogation." she said and abruptly turned, pushing the entrance button to Nosedive's room before another word could be said.

Two blond heads looked up from a collection of comic book carnage as Lia gasped. The room was littered with a colorful display of discarded candy wrappers, clothes of every shape and color, video game manuals, and dvd's. A sock hung from an overhead lighting display. And in the middle of all this chaos lay Nosedive and Buzz, munching on chips and looking as though they had never been happier. Wildwing stuck his head inside and promptly pushed his conversation with Lia to the back of his mind.

"For the love of Ducaine Dive, I thought I told you to get this place in order." he said, grimacing at the overhead sock.

Nosedive looked around the room, then looked to Buzz who shrugged. "I did get it in order." he defended. "I know exactly where everything is in here."

"Why does this sound familiar?" Lia wondered aloud as she sent a knowing look at her brother. He stuck his tongue out at her. She crouched down next to him and tried to read the comic book he was looking at.

"Is the comic you absolutely could not live without seeing?" she asked. He could only nod, his mouth was full of greasy chips which stuck in tiny crumbs at the corner of his mouth. Lia shook her head in dismay.

"Well, now you can die happy. Come on Buzz, we have to go." she said.

Buzz looked disappointed. He choked down his chips and moved to a sitting position by the still reclining Nosedive. "But we have the whole day. Can't I stay here? I'm sure it's okay with them."

Lia frowned. "Don't invite yourself Buzz. Besides, comic books hold no interest for me."

He returned her frown. "But you could hang with Wildwing. You have fun with him right?"

Lia grimaced slightly and glance furtively back at aforementioned duck, who was trying to suppress a smile. She turned her attention back to her brother, who was looking up at her with eager wide eyes. _Ah, to be young and naive._ she thought wistfully to herself.

"You guys can stay as long as you want as far as I'm concerned. That okay with you Dive?" Wildwing said, pointedly ignoring the look Lia was giving him. Nosedive look from his brother to Lia, then back to his brother. He knew Wildwing too well to know he wasn't just making a casual offer here. He grinned.

"Fine by me." he announced. After all, the kid wasn't so bad anyway. He knew comics almost as well as he did.

Lia was attempting to hold back what would surely be a very audible groan if released. She counted to ten silently and slowly straightened, looking at the two still on the floor.

"Tell you what Buzz. I need to go run some errands, so you stay here and I'll come and pick you back up tonight." She turned to Wildwing. "Will that be okay with you?" she asked.

From on the floor, Nosedive was doing his very best not to laugh or so much as even smirk at the sight of his tall, and lets face it, quite powerful brother, being stared down by a small human who didn't even reach his shoulder. His face alone was a study. Anyone who really knew Wildwing recognized his stubborn streak. It was the reason why he could endure the hardships of leading a resistance team on a foreign planet without going insane. But it did not seem to be serving him well in this case. He could tell his brother was not enjoying losing the upper hand. But eventually Nosedive saw the subtle changes in his demeanor which told him brother was accepting defeat for the moment.

Wildwing took a deep breath and forced out a smile. "Sure. But I'll walk you out. Our tech and defenses can be a bit sensitive to people who aren't familiar to them."

Lia felt every muscle in her neck tighten but she nodded anyway. "Of course." she said, then turned to Buzz and gave him a genuine smile. "Have fun. I'll see you tonight. What do you want for dinner?"

"Triple Spicy Taco's!" Buzz said without hesitation, looking over to Nosedive with a grin. Lia looked confused.

"Right." she said slowly, looking from one to the other with a puzzled look on her face. "Um, can they be just spicy?"

"Sure." Buzz said, giving her a small wave as she left and he returned to his comic book commentary with Nosedive.

The door clicked shut and Lia let out a long deep breath. "I was right." she said.

"About what?" Wildwing asked.

"You are worse than your brother."

"Oh?"

"You're crafty." she announced, then gestured in front of her. "You were going to show me out?" she asked.

Wildwing held his ground for a moment. "You know, You're going to have to tell me about yourself someday." he said and was surprised when Lia's eyes narrowed and she smirked.

"I lived with Andre and his crew for four years and if you asked him, the only information about me he had would take place during the time I lived with him. The weight of my past is my own. It's not Andre's, yours, or even Buzz's to carry." She thought for a moment. "Especially not Buzz's." she added. "I don't know why your so interested, but I strongly encourage you to drop the matter."

Wildwing stared at her for a moment before grinning and stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Thanks." he said as he walked away. "That tells me a lot."

Lia stood in the hallway and watched him walk away, surprised by the intensity with which she found herself wanting to kick the tall alien in the shins. At the end of the hallway he turned back to her.

"You coming?"

Probably couldn't hurt him anyway. He's just laugh at her attempt.

"Crafty." she muttered as she joined him.

Wildwing kept pace at her side, walking silently but watching her from the corner of his eye. They were almost to the lift when the door slid open and Duke emerged. His eyes widened slightly in surprise at the sight of Lia, but he soon shook it off and gave her a warm smile.

"Lia. Just the girl I need t' see." He held out an ornate box to her. "This came for ya."

Lia frowned. "For me? Here?" she asked.

Duke couldn't help but grin as he spilled the beans. "Yeah, your admirer stopped by." he said.

Lia took the box from his hands. "Admirer?" she asked as she lifted the lid and peered inside.

"Yeah, ya know, the one that jumped the stage for ya." Duke said, looking to Wildwing and frowning when Lia's expression suddenly froze. In fact all of her had frozen as she continued to stare at the contents of the box.

"What's the matter?" he asked her. "I checked it for anything suspicious." he said to Wildwing. The team leader was studying Lia's face and frowning deeply.

"Lia? What's wrong?" he asked, reaching for his mask at the same time he reached for her. She startled as his hand touched her arm and she dropped the box. A small obsidian bird tumbled out to the cold floor, it's foot snapping off upon impact. Falling close behind was a tiny yellow rose, not yet bloomed. Wildwing slipped his mask on quickly and gave the two objects a thorough scan. Nothing unusual about them. They were exactly what they appeared to be.

"A bird?" Duke said with not a small amount of confusion. When he agreed to serve as a courier he certainly didn't expect this extreme of a reaction from the recipient. She was staring at the objects on the floor with much of the same expression he had seen on her face last night. Although, there seemed to be a bit more horror now.

"A raven." she whispered. "It's a raven."

Wildwing and Duke looked at each other.

"kay, good t' know. Look Lia, if ya really don't like it, I'm sure I could return it. I just left him." Duke said. Lia threw an undefinable look at him.

"He's here?!" she cried as she suddenly snapped out of her frozen state and turned on her heel, running for the lift.

She was already stepping inside before Wildwing thought to try and follow. But it was too late. The lift door shut and began it's accent just before he reached her. He waited for a moment. The lift was extraordinarily fast and would return in a matter of seconds once she had stepped out. But as the seconds turned into a minute, then two, he grew impatient and flipped the console control at the door's side open.

"It's not responding." he growled.

Duke came over to his side and took a good look. He whistled appreciatively when he saw the screen. "It's been re-programmed."

"That's impossible. Tanya designed this. Her security walls are nearly impenetrable."

"Unless she messed with the wires. Short-circuited the doors so they wouldn't close."

"I've seen that set-up. It would take a professional electrician hours, if not days to work it out." Wildwing countered.

Duke grinned. "Don't forget she and Buzz share the same gene's."

Wildwing swore. "I'm going to head for the emergency stairs. Call the others on the com-link, tell them to get back here."

Duke held out a restraining hand. "Ya sure ya should get involved Wing? She might want t' deal wit' whoever this is on her own."

Wildwing frowned as he placed the mask back on his face. "I know she does. And that's what worries me." He activated the mask. "Call the others." he said as he ran for the stairs.

_Reviews most welcome :)_


	5. Chapter 5

Greetings,

So it occurred to me that I'm being a bit hypocritical by asking for reviews but I myself have reviewed very little for the Mighty Duck fanbase. My apologies. I'll will strive to remedy this situation. Sorry.


	6. Chapter 6

_Greetings. Here is chapter five, which the site will list as chapter six but oh well. _

_**Thank you **__to __**Closet Geek, Angel362, **__and of course, __**Mad-Eyed Owl. Southernlady, **__if your still out there, thank you to you too! You were my first reviewer. I am suppose to give you a prize for that?:)_

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own the Mighty Ducks. If I did I would have given them more realistic anatomy. Sometimes it looked like the artists used Gumby dolls for models. Especially Duke. As a massage therapist, this annoys me greatly._

**Chapter Five**

Wildwing took the stairs two and three at a time, using his arms to help propel himself upward as fast as he could. Perhaps he was just overreacting, but there something about the way Lia carried herself, the way she avoided talking about herself, that made him fear otherwise. He felt he had to hurry. Unfortunately the climb was a long one. Their base was a good hundred feet below ground, which of course had its advantages. At other times, for instance this one, it was a royal pain in the tail feathers.

At last he came to the reinforced titanium door which let out on the opposite wall of the room, the door itself disguised as unused lockers. They were well disguised, excepting the fact they were conspicuously clean and un-dented. A fact which changed the moment Wildwing pounded in the security codes and slammed open the door, knocking it against the other lockers with a gusto. He spared a quick look at the lift and saw Duke was indeed right. She had pried open the control panel and pulled three of the wires, splicing and then re-connecting them. It looked like a hasty job, but he could see it had been effective. The lift door looked very confused as it opened, then tried to shut again, but would only make it halfway before being forced to open once more. He almost felt bad for it.

Or he would have if an explosion hadn't nearly knocked him from his feet. He caught himself with his right hand against the wall and then pushed off, running for the locker room exit as fast as he was able. Bursting through the door, the first thing he noticed was the smell. Funny thing was, it wasn't unpleasant. The air smelt much like it did after a violent thunderstorm, the result of an ionized atmosphere. However, this wasn't something you usually associated with an indoor hockey arena.

Another explosion hit, lighter than the first but enough for him to make sure of his balance again, and was followed by an unmistakable cry of pain. The atmosphere ionized once more. It made his feathers stand on end. He ran for the rink, fearing the worse. Reaching the rink's edge he skidded to a halt and stared. He felt a bit confused.

Lia was not curled up on the ice crying in pain as he had feared. She seemed quite well in fact. She stood at the north end of the rink, her feet firmly planted on the slippery ice. She was barefoot, which he found odd, but was otherwise unharmed. The same could not be said for the man standing opposite of her on the south side. He was grimacing as he held his left arm, bracing himself against the rink wall. He seemed to be catching his breath. Steam rose from the ice, tracing a thick line between the two.

Wildwing opened his beak to speak, but Lia, unaware of his presence, beat him to it.

"Leave us alone!" she shouted to the man standing opposite. The man pushed off of the wall and grinned, swaying unsteadily on his feet.

"I have no intention of bothering "us"." he announced. "It's you my old man wants. Believe it or not he gave me strict instructions to leave your brother out of this. For whatever reason he's playing nice. I suggest taking advantage of his generosity while it still exists. Come back with me."

"I left for a reason Newt. You know that better than anyone." she answered, shifting her stance as the man shifted his on the ice. "Please. Just go. Leave me out of his games." He shook his head.

"Lia, be reasonable. This isn't a game and you know it. You have to come back. If not now, then soon." Newt answered.

She closed her eyes, and through the mask Wildwing could see the stress lines forming at the corners. She looked back up. "Newt, please. Please." she begged.

Newt remained unmoved. His stance changed subtly as he released his left arm and hardened his stance. Wildwing could see he was preparing for an attack, although, he couldn't see what it would be. He was too far away for a physical attack. He had no weapons on him that he could see and the only thing he carried was a small nondescript pendant which hung from a plain chain at his right hand.

"I'll stop you." Lia announced, although her heart didn't sound as though it was in the threat. Newt shook his head with a rueful smile.

"Bluffing was never your strong point. You could stop me, perhaps, on a different day. But your unprepared for this Lia. As you can see, we've made improvements since your unexpected departure. To my eyes, your equipment is embarrassingly weak. Are those the same glittering trinkets you used for your little fire show last night?"

"If Ravenseye is so advanced by now, then why bother with me?"

"Because, whether we like it or not, you created this particular blend of science. Your natural ability to understand it is something which cannot be duplicated. Please Lia. Stop fighting me."

She shook her head and he sighed as he raised his right hand, the pendant swinging from it. A few drops of blood fell from his useless left arm and splattered on the ice. "You used up those little pieces of glitter on those first two attacks. I have the upper hand now." he stated, his body tensing.

Through the mask Wildwing could see a subtle glow beginning to emanate from the pendant. While he didn't have the slightest idea what it was, or what was going on for that matter, he decided this was as good as time as any to get involved. Morphing quickly into his battle gear, he raised his own right arm and fired a warning puck at the mans feet. It was enough to make Lia's attacker flinch, disturbing his concentration.

"Not now you don't." he announced, stepping out onto the ice, his skates activating automatically.

Lia turned to him with a look of horror on her face. "Wildwing, no!" she shouted.

The next few seconds happened in a blur of motion. As the man called Newt swung his right arm and the pendant with it in his direction, the glow from the dull piece of jewelry came to life once more. Wildwing instinctively activated his ice shield as a flare of sapphire light rushed unevenly towards him. It connected with his shield violently, forcing him back into the wall of the rink, where he hit with a jarring thud. Before he was able to completely come to his senses he was assailed again. He braced his arm for the impact, but it never came. Another flare of light, this one a fairer shade of blue than the first, a shade he knew he had seen before, rushed between him and the vicious pyrotechnics making a beeline for him. The two lights impacted with the force of colliding trains, exploding with a deafening crash and cracking the ice beneath him.

Steam was everywhere. It billowed in thick clouds all around him and the unmistakable sensation of static electrified the air. He struggled to his feet and took a quick sweep around him, the mask confirming the electricity which charged around him. Through it he could see two warm bodies, one facing his direction but still, and the other clumsily running towards him. He raised his puck launcher, preparing for another attack. A moment later Lia emerged through the thick steam, stumbling to a halt in front of him, her eyes wide in surprise at his stance.

"Lia." he said, lowering his arm. "Are you okay?"

She looked tired. There were dark circles forming under her eyes and her small hands trembled, but she shook her head. "It's not me you should worry about right now. Newt is still out there."

"Indeed I am." came a disembodied voice. "How resourceful Lia. Utilizing the steam and ice to create a deflecting charge. Rudimentary perhaps, but effective. But with your electromagnets drained, will you be able to do it again? Human flesh is a poor channel for the forces we wield."

Wildwing stepped in front of Lia, whose body was trembling as she swayed on her feet. "What did you do to her?" he shouted out. He could hear a light chuckle as the steam dissipated and the form of a young man silhouetted from across the rink.

"Me? She did this to herself. Lia, come on now." Newt became visible now, his blond hair fell haphazardly over his dark eyes, and beneath the expensive suit he wore, it was easy to tell his body was tense. Wildwing took a quick scan of his vitals. Human hearts beat a bit faster then that of his own species, but he could tell the man's heart was beating rapidly even for a human. Frowning, he turned to Lia and scanned her vitals as well. He nearly gasped. Her heart was beating entirely too fast to be healthy and she appeared to have broken out in a cold sweat. She belonged in the medical room, not on the cold ice.

"You need to leave." Lia said suddenly. She was staring at Newt, her eyes nearly unblinking as she studied his every movement. Wildwing stared down at her.

"Excuse me?" he said incredulously.

"I can't defend against him if there's someone else to consider." she explained.

Wildwing scowled. "You can't go against him period. Look at yourself, it's a fight in and of itself to keep standing."

"Listen to your friend Lia. You can't win if you can't fight back. Come with me. I'll take care of you." Newt announced, his stance still unwavering.

"Newt please, just go away!" Lia shouted out as she took step forward. But with her body being as weak as it was, she stumbled on the ice. Wildwing caught her around her waist and pulled her behind him again.

"You heard the lady. Leave my rink before I have to make you." he announced. Newt was silent for a moment before breaking out in laughter.

"You have no idea what you're up against, do you?" he said. "Well, I guess the advantage is mine then. You can't fight what you don't understand." He raised the pendant. "Lia, he wanted you to come willingly, but I can already see you're not going to be persuaded. I'll give you this one last chance. Come with me. If you don't, I will hurt you enough to make you come."

Wildwing raised his ice shield in front of them both, preparing for the attack as Lia gripped his arm and steadied herself on her feet behind him. Then, unexpectedly, she embraced him from behind, her hands running across his chest plating slowly, as if searched for something. He tensed. "What are you doing?" he whispered.

She continued her explorations and as he looked down, he noticed a slight glint of metal in both of her hands. "You won't leave so I'm trying to save us both. Your armor, it's advanced technology. There must be some sort of electromagnet in here somewhere, it's simply a matter of finding it."

"What?" he whispered fiercely. He took his eyes off her hands and looked up. Newt was watching with an expression mixed of anger and frustration. The pendant raised in front of him began to glow.

"That's enough Lia. You've had your chance."

Behind Wildwing, Lia smiled as the magnet in her right hand clicked down at the center of her protectors chest armor. _Not a second too soon_ she thought as she tightened her grip on him.

"Keep absolutely still." she whispered.

Wildwing was about to protest when an undeniably odd sensation coursed its way through his body. Every nerve ending, from the crown of his head to the tip of his toes, felt as though it had suddenly gained a life of its own. It was not painful, but the sensations froze him. He felt as though he had become a living lightening rod. In front of him, Newt's pendant had come to life, and Wildwing knew it would be only a matter of seconds before he attacked with that strange forceful light of his.

Behind Wildwing, Lia was trying her best to focus the unstable energies she had forced together. The nature and origins of the electromagnet she had found in the duck's armor was unknown, so she couldn't be certain of the outcome of what she was about to do. On the other hand though, there wasn't much of a choice in the matter. Newt was not going to give up this time around unless she provided him with a very good reason to retreat. This burst was going to have to be powerful enough to make him think twice. She only hoped the electromagnet she was about to use would be strong enough. It was either that or use her body as a conductor again. Newt was wrong one point. Human flesh was in fact an excellent conductor of the energy she wielded, in theory. But it took it's toll physically, and she wasn't sure if she could remain conscious long enough to do what she had to. Closing her eyes she refocused on the task at hand and felt a rush of sensation she was only all to familiar with.

A cry of surprise lodged itself in Wildwing's throat as he and Lia's bodies were suddenly consumed by a flare of blue light. It then branched out and wound itself in loose circles around them, it's beautiful flame reflecting off the ice below. Less than a hundred feet in front of them, Newt's pendant exploded as well, surrounding him briefly with an intense sapphire shade of light before flinging out at them at a remarkable speed. Wildwing felt Lia's arms tighten around him and even though his instincts were screaming for him to grab her and jump out of the oncoming lights path, he found he was glued to where he stood. His jaw clenched. He had a feeling the next few seconds were not going to be pleasant.

They weren't. The oncoming force collided with the light which surrounded them protectively, jarring them both to their cores. Wildwing felt like his very bones were being assaulted as the rushing light tried to crash it's way into them. It sparked and hissed, branching out into several 'arms', almost as if were a living thing, trying to gain entry to the two fragile creatures inside.

Wildwing felt another surge of sensation course through his body and suddenly the sapphire light which attacked them was deflected violently away. It rushed back to it's creator as rapidly as it had attacked them. Despite his current situation, Wildwing grimaced as Newt was hit by his own weapon and was blown several feet backward, colliding with the rink wall. There was an audible crack and the young man cried out in pain. He did not attempt to get up.

The light surrounding them dissipated almost immediately after Newt was thrown, and as Lia's arms loosened their grip on him, Wildwing felt his body release from the frozen state it had been trapped in. From behind him he heard a soft groan and he turned in time to catch Lia before she cracked her head on the ice. She was barely conscious and stared out at the fallen form of Newt with an empty expression on her face. He scooped her up and her head lolled gently against his chest as he stared out at the rink. Or what was left of it anyway. Cracks of every size and shape littered the ice, and several scorched marks ran right down to the cement foundations. Steam was still rising in small pockets here and there. He marveled at the devastation as he heard a soft whistle from behind him.

"This must be what the apocalypse looks like." came the familiar voice of his brother.

Duke stepped up next to him and surveyed the damage with his one good eye. He then turned to Wildwing, who was walking with Lia towards the rinks edge. "She okay?" he asked simply.

"I don't know. Whatever happened out there, it hurt her." he answered. He looked around the stadium. "Where are the others?" he asked.

Duke shrugged. "They're on their way. It's only been a few minutes ya know."

"It seemed like it was longer." Wildwing sighed.

Duke glanced again at the devastated rink. "I'm sure it did."

"How about you? You okay bro?" Nosedive asked.

"Against all odds, yeah. I can't say the same for Lia though. I gotta get her down to the medical room. Duke, can you call Tanya and ask her to meet us there?"

"Sure thing."

It was then that Lia stirred in his arms. The first few sounds she made were little more than strangled gasps, but eventually coherent words began to form. "Buzz....Buzz...where...?" she rasped.

Nosedive stepped closer. "He's fine, Don't worry. He wasn't too happy about it but I made him stay below."

Lia gave a faint nod. "Don't...let him..see.." she whispered faintly, pointing to herself. Nosedive understood immediately.

"Gotcha. I'll go run interference with the runt." he said, running back for the locker room.

Wildwing shifted Lia's weight in his arms and turned to Duke. "I'm going to take her down. Do me a favor and grab the guy on the ice. We're probably going to need to get some answers out of him."

"Sure thing." Duke said and watched as his leader left. He looked to the ice and frowned. "Well, I'd grab 'em if he were here." he said. The young man known as Newton had disappeared, a blood stained spot of ice against the far rink wall the only part of himself left behind. Duke called the others on his com as he studied the area for a few minutes, but found nothing useful. He then turned and followed Wildwing's path back to the locker room.

***********

Wildwing gently settled Lia onto one of the elevated beds in the medical room, removing his mask as he moved to the the head of the bed. He began punching a sequence into the small computer screen embedded in the arch standing at the head. Tanya had made them all learn the rudiments of the high tech scanners which served as electronic nurses. They did a better job than his mask at determining health. A series of numbers appeared on the screen and informed him, among other things, of her blood pressure, body temperature, and heart rate. The computer let out an alarmed beep and Wildwing silenced it. Granted, even a human in peak condition would alarm their computer since it was programmed for duck vitals and not human. But still, Wildwing knew enough to know that Lia's vitals were probably not where they should be.

She groaned and her head tossed to the side. Wildwing leaned over her, brushing the sweaty hair from from her face. "Lia?" he asked softly.

Slowly her eyes opened. She stared at him for a moment before her eyes began to wander and her face screwed in confusion. "Where is this?" she asked.

"Our med room. You fell unconscious again as I was taking you down the stairs. Remember?"

She frowned. "No."

He chuckled. "Well, I'm impressed your still talking coherently after that little episode upstairs. You do realize there's no way you're getting out of an explanation, right?"

She struggled to move to a sitting position and he gently, but firmly, pushed her back onto the pillow.

"Oh no you don't. Tanya will have my primaries if I let you up. You're staying here." he announced, one arm on each side of her to prevent her escape.

Lia sighed. "Let me guess. You have ways of making me talk."

"Sure do. It's called 'let Nosedive cook for the patient'. One hundred percent success ratio." he said, moving back and giving her some space now that she was behaving herself again.

"Tanya should be here soon to do the actual doctoring." he said. "Unless of course the medical student in the room can give me some pointer's on how to care for a human?" he said and succeeded in making her smile.

"It's just exhaustion. I'll be alright eventually. It isn't the first time this has happened." she said, grimacing when she saw his eyes brighten in interest.

"Is that so?" he said.

"But," she continued quickly. "a blanket would be nice. You guys keep all these rooms so cold."

Wildwing nodded and upon a quick survey of the supply closet produced a thick blanket, which he draped over her. "Phil has complained about that before too. I forget humans don't have feathers to keep them warm. Must have been rough way back when." he commented.

"I know. It's amazing we've survived evolution." she said as he pulled up a chair to the bedside and sat down.

"I'm guessing your ancestors were clever. Picked their fights wisely." he said casually. Then he trained his deep blue eyes on her. "Something you could stand to learn a bit better." he added seriously.

Lia couldn't help the smirk that found its way to her lips. "You're just dying to know what happened up there aren't you?"

"Of course I am. But you'll notice I'm being a gentleman and waiting until you have a clean bill of health before I grill you." he answered.

"Lovely." she said as the door slid open and Tanya rushed in.

Wildwing soon found himself being ushered out the door. As he made his way down the long hallway he met Nosedive, who had his arms full with various packages of junk food. The younger drake grinned.

"Trying to keep the kid happy." he explained. "How is she?"

"She's awake. And talking. Tanya is with her now, we'll see after that." Wildwing said, catching a bag of chips which slipped from Nosedive's overloaded arms. He returned it to the pile. "But with everything that happened up there, I'm not letting her or Buzz leave. I don't care what she has to say about it."

Nosedive gave him a searching look. "So what did happen up there Wing? The aftermath was pretty intense."

Wildwing stared up at he ceiling, looking as though he was trying to see the rink above. "I'm not sure Dive. But you remember the 'Maiden's Beacon' from last night?"

"Sure."

He looked back at his brother.

"Picture an intense, unpleasant, and very un-nice version of that, then multiply it a few dozen times. That's what I saw." he said.

Nosedive grimaced. "Sound's brutal." he said, even though he was having a hard time picturing what Wildwing was trying to explain. But regardless of whether he understood or not, the fact of the matter was they had a rink which was, for lack of a better term, toast. He understood that much. Whatever had happened up there was serious, and if Wildwing thought it was best for Buzz and Lia to stay here, then it probably was. Although, he didn't envy his brother having to tell Lia. She didn't seem like the sort of person who would particularly enjoy...umm...enforced hospitality.

Oh well, it was Wildwing's job anyway. He was the leader for a reason. Besides, Nosedive wasn't so stupid that he didn't see his brother's growing interest in the human.

"Well," he began. "I guess we have two more for dinner tonight huh?"

Wildwing nodded. "I guess. What did you tell Buzz?"

Nosedive made a face. "I don't think he bought it. I told him Drake One malfunctioned and accidentally set off some of our defenses, which detonated. Get this, he offered to fix it. Fortunately he thinks Lia was already gone, so he's not worried about her."

Wildwing nodded. "I'll tell Lia. It'll be up to her to decide what's she's going to tell him."

"I don't like lying to the runt Wing." he said.

"I know, but just keep him entertained until Lia can talk to him okay?"

Nosedive nodded to the food in his arms. "What do think this is all for?" he asked as he headed down the hallway.

"By the way bro, he's bunking with you tonight." Wildwing called out as he headed for the kitchen, smiling as Nosedive's pained protest's echoed down the hall.

_Reviews most welcome :)_


	7. Chapter 7

_Greetings. Sixth chapter, coming up. _

_Thanks to __**Mad-Eyed Owl, Angel362, **__and __**Closet Geek.**__ You guys motivate me to write! :)_

_Disclaimer: The Mighty Ducks are not mine. Never have been. Congrats Disney. You own nearly everything in the world._

**Chapter Six**

Lia awoke slowly, her mind in a daze from the mild sedative Tanya had given her. Confusion set in momentarily as she tried to re-orient herself with her current surroundings, but soon realization seeped into the hazy portions of her mind. She began a mental list of what she knew. First, she was underground, in the ducks, well, for lack of a better term, lair. Fortress. Stronghold. Second, regardless of the name assigned to it, this hiding place was currently ensuring her and her brother's safety.

Third, quite soon Wildwing would be walking, in his annoying confident way, through the doors of the medical room. He would then politely, but firmly, request an explanation she wanted very much to avoid giving. For four years she had managed to avoid even thinking about that half decade of her life which was the source of so much regret and pain. Frustration welled up in her. Why? After working so hard, succeeding for over five years in hiding herself and all but burying the past. After finally finding the brother she had been certain she would never see again. Dreams she didn't even know she had were starting to become a reality. Family, a home, a career. Rook chose this pivotal moment in her life to return and uproot it all.

She wished she could hate him. It would make things so much easier, so much simpler if she could hate him. But even when his son had faced her down, when he had threatened and then tried to seriously hurt both her and Wildwing. Even then she could not hate him. And she hated herself for it. But she couldn't.

Sitting up on the high bed with her legs dangling over the side, she glanced up at the wall clock. It was just after six. Hopefully it was in the evening on the same day. The idea of losing a whole day to sleep almost made her nauseated. Especially during the current circumstances, when Rook was back on the hunt. He was a patient man, but when he decided to act, it was unwise to assume this sleeping giant would not move. He wanted to find her. Which meant after five years he had a renewed reason to seek her out. When she left she had done her best to destroy his plans, to reduce his goals to proverbial ashes. The realization suddenly sank in. Had the Odin Project begun again?

The fear of this thought hit without warning and her shaking did not stop even after pulling the blanket tight around her. Wildwing would soon be asking questions. She knew she did not want to give them. She didn't want to look into the face of her memories again. He wanted to reintroduce her to them. Everything in her wanted to fight him.

But, her mind argued, he had defended her. She had tried to keep him away but he had still jumped her hurdles and fought for her life. Practically a stranger, yet he had tried to save her life. And she could not forget, in the not so distant past, he and his team had saved the life of her brother. For this alone he deserved to know what he had faced up on the ice.

Taking deep breaths to calm her body, she pulled the blanket tighter and stepped gingerly to the floor, allowing her legs time to steady before taking further steps. Thanks to Tanya's care and to the sleep she had been forced into, she felt stronger. Certainly better than the last time this had happened. Considering the strength of the electromagnet in Wildwing's armor, this came as a surprise. She resolved not to underestimate alien technology in the future.

Looking about the room she saw a clean set of jeans and a blue long-sleeved shirt had been left out for her. Mallory's no doubt. Unwrapping the blanket from around herself she was dismayed to see that her favorite long skirt had been somewhat....ruined. It was crumpled with small but recognizable tears littering it's length. It also suffered from scorch marks. Her white sleeveless top had fared no better. She looked like the victim of a horrible firecracker accident.

Smiling ruefully at her appearance, she slipped out of her clothes and pulled on the jeans and shirt. The fabric was soft and warm, she snuggled into it immediately. Taking a closer look, Lia had no doubt it was of a designer label, the stitching and the cuts were too well done to be generic. Mallory certainly had good taste. The clothes were a bit loose but she felt much better to be wearing them. At least now she could face Buzz without frightening the poor child to death.

There was a knock at the door then an all too familiar voice passing through the metal door. "Are you awake? Can I come in?" he asked. Lia sighed. This was not going to be a fun experience.

"You might as well." she said eventually and the door slid open. Wildwing gave her a once over and smiled appreciatively.

"You look good in those." he said.

Ignoring his comment, Lia held up the edge of her sleeve, which fell a few inches past her wrist. "A donation from Mallory I assume?" she asked.

His smile faded and he unexpectedly shivered. "You wouldn't believe how many clothes she has. It's obscene. She says to keep those, by the way."

Lia was taken aback for a moment then nodded, sparing another glance for her garments. "I probably don't want to think about the amount of money I'm wearing do I?"

"Well, in this case, I think ignorance is bliss." he answered, crossing his arms and leaning against the doorway, then focusing a leveling look at her. She shuffled from one foot to another, keeping her eyes off his.

"It's very generous of her at any rate." she said. He shrugged.

"I guess. You're not getting out of this, I hope you know."

She backed up a step. "What do you mean?"

He rolled his eyes. "You're stalling."

Lia felt her anger bubble in her. "Can you blame me?" she asked sharply.

Wildwing considered this for a moment. "I don't know." he said slowly. "I don't know enough to blame you or not. So why don't you enlighten me?"

Lia's anger suddenly diffused. He wasn't going to react, he just wanted to know. Maybe she could tell just enough to get by, enough so he would stop pressing her for answers. Perhaps there was still a way out of this. Satisfy his curiosity, or whatever it was that was driving him to pursue her, and maybe she could just walk away with Buzz afterwards. She risked meeting his eyes and nodded.

"Alright then. But does it have to be here? I feel a bit claustrophobic." she said, motioning about her. Wildwing thought for a moment then grinned and took her hand, pulling her out the door.

"I have just the place." he said as he led her barefoot out into the hall, then through an unmarked door towards the end.

A few minutes, and a few steep stairs later, she found herself standing somewhere on the roof of the pond, overlooking the city. The sun was beginning its decent to the horizon line as the wind attempted to make a bird's nest of her long hair, but she no longer felt claustrophobic. There was an iron rail which ran the length of the small outcropping they stood on and Wildwing pushed himself up to sit on it, apparently unconcerned with the wind or the sixty foot drop below.

Tying her hair back quickly, she wrapped her arms around her and shivered slightly, this time from the cold. The sun was shining, but it was still March, and the wind was chilly. Wildwing shrugged off his light jacket and tossed it to her.

"Here. It's not much but it's a good windbreaker." he said as she nodded gratefully and pulled her arms through. It was huge on her. The sleeves hung a good half foot past the tips of her fingers and she had to bend down to even reach the end of the zipper. By the time she finally got it zipped and the sleeves pushed up, Wildwing was laughing.

"You're a behemoth." she accused.

"You're a shrimp." he shot back, but the laughter in his voice diffused the insult. He patted the rail next to him. "Jump up. I don't like looking down at you."

She stared at him with wide eyes. "Sit? On that? I'll fall."

"You weren't years in the circus for nothing. You won't fall."

"Of course I will. The wind will catch this parachute you gave me and I'll fly away. I never trained for that."

"I won't let that happen. I promise. Now come on up." he said. She hesitated. "Please?" he asked.

Giving in, she took a hold of the railing and easily swung herself up. Just as she predicted, the wind caught the billowing jacket she wore and pushed up against it. Tightening her grip, she sat herself down and glared over at Wildwing, who was waiting patiently. The wind pushed at her again and she tucked the jacket close around her as she scooted a little closer to the tall duck. His brows raised.

"If I fall, you're coming with me." she explained. He nodded.

"Fair enough. Now you're settled, let's talk." he said. Lia felt fear of a different kind coil itself in her belly.

"I don't even know where to begin." And at the moment she didn't. All the years jumbled together in an instant. But the drake was undeterred and reached into his jean pocket, pulling out a small obsidian bird. He set it in her hands.

"Start there." he said simply, and waited.

She tumbled the bird over in her hand, taking a closer look at it. Its right foot was missing from when she had dropped it, but was otherwise whole. Despite the fear and regret the statue induced, she had to appreciate its beauty. It was crafted of fine obsidian, polished until it glowed. The raven was posed in mid flight, it's beak open and it's talon's extended as though reaching out for it's prey. It almost looked alive. She ran her finger slowly down the length of one of the wings.

"Ravenseye. This is the symbol of Ravenseye." she began. Wildwing nodded but said nothing, waiting for her to continue. After a moment she did.

"They're a...business. Of sorts. But not the sort the average person on the street would know about, if you take my meaning."

"Mafia?" Wildwing ventured, but Lia shook her head.

"Too simple a term. Organized crime doesn't fit either. They're hard to explain in a single sentence, or two even. Let's just say they have their hands dipped into nearly every country in the world, in one way or another. That is to say, legally when they can, and illegally when they must. Or when it suits their interests."

"And what are their interests?"

Lia sighed. "Well, apparently me at the moment."

Wildwing gave her a level look. "You have an annoying gift for understatement. Tell me why. Why are they after you? That man Newt, he mentioned your creation of a science. What did he mean?"

Lia felt her heart freeze for a moment. She hadn't realized he had been present for that bit of the conversation. How long had he been standing at the rinks edge? What else had he heard? She took a deep breath and shook her head dismissively. "Newt never did understand the forces he used. I didn't create a science. I merely discovered how to make an old theory work."

"What theory?"

"Something called Odic Force. I'm going to go out on a limb here an assume you're not familiar with the old gods of European mythology?"

Wildwing spared her a quick grin. "Guilty." he said. "I haven't even gotten to start on the book you gave me today."

"So it is the same day then?" she asked. He nodded.

"Yeah. But you're getting off subject. Norse gods remember? Enlighten me." he said.

Somehow she couldn't help but smile. She was sitting atop a hockey arena, talking to an alien who was asking her about Earth mythology. There was just something inherently funny about it, despite her current troubles. Wildwing looked at her askew.

"What?" he asked.

She tried to suppress her smile, focusing on the sun which was setting in front of them. "Nothing." she said quickly. "Back to business then. Odin, according to legend, was known as a 'father god', the chief god, if you will, of Norse paganism. Very old belief, all but dead now."

"Well, that's why it's a legend right?" Wildwing interjected.

Lia considered this for a moment. "I guess." she eventually said. "Odin was responsible for, among other things, battle and death. He was a warrior. Yet he was also responsible for setting the sun and moon on their courses at the worlds beginning. So, in a way, he was also a god of life. Whatever he was, he was the inspiration for a man by the name of Baron Karl Ludwig von Reichenbach."

Wildwing couldn't help the snort of laughter. "Quite the mouthful. Bet he got teased as a kid."

Lia rolled her eyes. "It was the eighteen hundreds, he was a rich noble, and he had a castle. I doubt it. Regardless, the Baron was a notable chemist in his day, among other things. An eccentric scientist of sorts. Keep in mind, this was over a hundred and fifty years ago, when modern science in Europe was still in it's toddler years. Hidden among his more brilliant accomplishments were some pretty strange ideas. It was the same with many others of the time. However, it seemed one of his more unbelievable theories had merit, although, it would never be proved in his lifetime."

"And this was Odic Force?"

She nodded.

"The Baron's theory was that every living thing, from plant life to human, had an Od force, a energetic life force which permeated it. Unfortunately this couldn't be proved at the time, and he was eventually discredited. Discredited at least, until a hundred and fifty odd years later, when a man named Rook read about his theories, and became enthralled by the potential he saw in Odic Force."

She paused for a breath and Wildwing interrupted. "Lia, this history lesson is interesting and all, but you're still not telling what I need to know."

She sighed, paused for effect, then spoke. "Rook is the founder of Ravenseye."

There was a few moments of silence.

"Ah. I see." Wildwing said. Lia looked up at him.

"I think." he added. "So how do you fit into this puzzle?"

Lia felt her hands tighten on the iron rail beneath her. This is where it became tricky. Taking a deep breath and letting her hands adsorb her nervous energy, she answered. "Rook was fascinated by Reichenbachs theory, and he was something of a hobby scientist himself. Using modern technology he was able to finally prove Odic Force. It was a great achievement, but he wasn't satisfied. He wanted to harness it. But despite his best efforts, he failed. Then...then I came along."

She paused, trying to collect her thoughts. Five years of her life. Most of which was too difficult to put into words. Wildwing, seeing the strained expression on her delicate face, hesitantly reached over and carefully set his large hand over her own, covering it completely. Lia started at the unexpected touch, but as she waited she found she appreciated the gesture. Even if he didn't understand what she was thinking. Besides, the sun was steadily dipping below the horizon and it was getting very chilly up here. His hand was warm.

"Lia?" he prompted gently, glad she hadn't pulled her hand away, but still determined to get his answers.

"I..ah...I was, discovered, I guess you could say, by Rook as a child. I was eight years old, my parents were dead, and I had been told by the care workers my little brother was dead. Add to this the fact I was almost painfully intelligent. Mensa tested at the age of five. Not a good combination of factors for a child entering a foster home. My first six months were....well...."

She paused again. "Anyway, Rook took me in. He began to show me his theories, his experiments. He challenged my mind, encouraging its use and growth. He depended on me. He had already been terribly hurt by his first experimentations, which had drained him of his vitality and health. He was always sick. Imagine, as a frightened child, to be told by an adult that they need you. To be told you're special and you wouldn't have to be frightened ever again. This is what Rook told me. He also had a son my age, and he encouraged our friendship."

"Newt?"

She nodded. "Soon I had a brother to replace the one I thought I had lost. We were a family of sorts. Little by little it became easier to forget what life had been like before and I threw myself into the work Rook laid out for me. He made it fun. Odic Force, to me, wasn't a chore or a task. It was, in a way, my toy. My favorite toy. And like so many children, I eventually mastered it. My first successes were small and not all that noteworthy, but Rook was overjoyed. I was praised."

She looked up at Wildwing, who met her eyes evenly. She glanced away quickly. "Rook was already a wealthy man. He gave me every comfort. Anything I wanted, he gave it to me, no questions asked. Honestly, I was spoiled. But when Rook would praise my efforts, all my possessions would fade away. I was never happier than when that frail man would tell me how well I had done. Unfortunately, there wasn't much I wouldn't do for his praise."

The familiar sting of tears threatened her eyes and thickened her throat. Struggling for composure, she took in deep breaths and tried to calm herself. The warmth over her hand shifted, and she soon found her hand captive between both of Wildwing's. He set it on his lap gently, careful not to look her in the eyes, for which she was grateful. His eyes were a bit to unsettling, and this was a crucial moment in her story. The time after she had first harnessed Odic Force to the time of her departure had been...eventful. And she had no desire to share all of those events.

"What happened Lia?" Wildwings deep voice echoed into what had become the night. The sun had finally set and the stars were beginning to shine.

"Rook, he...he told me a lot of things about what he had intended to do with Odic Force. Most were humanitarian in nature, which of course, reinforced my thought that he was some kind of living saint. I was stupid. Naive and stupid. What he really wanted, what so many people want, was power. What could have been a source of great good, he turned into a weapon. Things....happened. I became disillusioned. So, when I was thirteen, I ran, destroying all my research as I left. Andre found me a few months later, living on the streets, and took me in."

"So," Wildwing said slowly. "I'm assuming what hit us on the ice, and what you defended us with, was this Odic Force?"

Lia nodded.

"And you destroyed your research."

"Yes."

"Then how did we get attacked by something supposedly destroyed six years ago?"

Lia tried to remove her hand from the drakes, but his gentle embrace had become a secure grip. Her hand apparently, was staying where it was for the time being. Grimacing, she explained. "I destroyed my notes and my research, and everything I could find of Rooks as well. But he worked side by side with me. He was adamant about it. I may have put the puzzle pieces together in my head, but everything I knew, I shared with Rook. He's a smart man. It doesn't particularly surprise me he found a way to re-create some of the applications we worked on."

"Like the pendant."

"Yes."

"Then why does he want you?" he asked.

Lia's jaw suddenly had a firm set to it.

"I don't know."

"Newt said that they needed you. You lived with this man for five years, essentially created the weapon he's using. Yet you expect me to believe you don't know why?" Wildwing pressed.

"Yes."

"Lia, be reasonable." he said, then immediately regretted his choice of words as she stiffened at his side. He had inadvertently crossed a line, and Lia was reacting to it. Her demeanor changed. The brief vulnerability he had seen earlier had vanished.

"Let go of me." she said, trying to pull her hand from his. He resisted. Why did she have to be so stubborn?

"Lia, I'm just trying to help you."

"Where have I heard this before? It seems everyone wants to help me today. Why can't you just forget about this? You don't even know me. I'm not your responsibility."

By now she was leaning away from him, trying to pull herself free. Wildwing wasn't necessarily trying to keep her hand captive by now, but was more concentrated on keeping them steady on the rail.

"Lia, calm down." he said, swinging one leg over the other side of the rail as she struggled. She was actively fighting him now, her eyes concentrated on where he gripped her hand and wrist.

"Then let me go." she said.

"You'll fall." he answered. Finally, not wanting to take the risk of them plunging to their deaths, he yanked hard on her arm, pulling her towards him as he let himself fall back to the safety of the cement. Lia may had been an acrobat for several years of her life, but she was no match for the six foot-two hockey player. She tumbled with him, his body cushioning her own as they met the cement with a muted thud.

They lay there for a few seconds, Wildwing flat on his back, and Lia sprawled on top of him. The first thing he registered was they were safe, more or less. Although his head was stinging. What registered second was that she was incredibly light. He could hardly feel her weight. She shifted slowly and raised herself up, eventually sitting at his side. He stayed where he was, looking up at her.

"Well," he said lightly, "that was stupid of us."

Lia's sat silently at his side, her head turned down. Her hair, which had become unbound as they fell, fell in thick blond sheets which hid her face. Her hands were hidden beneath the sleeves of his jacket, but he could tell she had knotted them in her lap. When she finally spoke, he had to strain to hear her, especially with the wind whistling past their ears.

"I'm sorry."

Wildwing, still laying on the cement, shrugged. "I've taken worse hits during practice. You're not going to hurt me, so don't worry."

She shook her head slightly. "That's not what I meant. I don't understand why you want to help me, but you do. I know I'm not making this easier for you. So...I'm sorry."

Wildwing sat up and faced her. "Apology accepted. But answer me this, at least. Why are fighting me so much?"

Another long silence on Lia's part. Then, "I don't know."

Wildwing took a calming breath. "Okay. Then, are you let me help you?"

"I don't know."

Wildwing felt the sudden urge to shake her. Everything about this whole situation, so much about just her, was very frustrating to him. He found it was very hard trying to do something with little information, and she wasn't making it any easier by omitting details. The fact she was doing it on purpose drove him mad. The problem was, he didn't sense she was actively trying to be deceitful or malicious. Which made the situation all the more frustrating.

"Lia," he began slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I don't understand why you're so determined to face this, whatever it is, on your own. I really don't. Maybe it's because I'm a duck, and in my world, we're taught teamwork above all else. It's an incredibly strong value to us. For whatever reason, you seem to think the best thing to do is handle this alone. It makes no sense to me."

Lia stared at her hands, twisting them in her lap. "I suppose it doesn't. It doesn't always make sense to me either."

Wildwing threw up his hands at the admission. "Then _why?_" he nearly shouted.

Lia grimaced, but held her ground, finding herself matching his tone as she answered. "Because it's _my _responsibility! Everything I did, everything I created. _I'm _responsible for it. No one else. Only me, and me alone! And I will face it. Alone."

By now she was on her feet, marching for the door as Wildwing scrambled to his feet behind her. He caught up just as she reached the heavy door, catching her upper arm and bringing her to a halt.

"Lia, what about Buzz?" he asked gently.

She felt her legs go weak at the soft question. He was right. What about Buzz? She had been focusing all this time on what had happened in the past, and what she planned to do or not do about it. But she wasn't alone anymore. It wasn't just her. Buzz depended on her. She couldn't knowingly bring him into danger. He was the last true member of her family. How many times had he told her of his life at the institute? How many times had he expressed happiness at the fact he was finally free of them? Leading a normal life. If she left to face Ravenseye, or if she ran from them, could he come with her? Or would he have to return to Al and the institute? Either option was not a healthy one for a growing child. Her past was her responsibility, that could never be argued. But, Buzz was her responsibility as well.

God, he was right. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Wildwing was right. She couldn't do this on her own. At least not at the moment. She had many responsibilities, but first and foremost was the safety and security of her brother.

"You make a good point." she said, keeping her back to the drake. His grip on her arm had loosened, but he still hadn't let go.

"Does that mean you'll stay?" he asked. She turned to face him.

"Stay?" she asked.

"Well, the easiest way for us to protect you both is to have you stay with us." he said.

Mentally, she quickly reviewed her current situation. It was the beginning of spring break, she wouldn't be expected in her classes for another week. Buzz certainly wouldn't object. A whole week with his heroes, in their own home nonetheless, would be like some sort of prize vacation for him. And they could always contact Al and let him know where they were. All Al really cared about was that Buzz was safe. And surely within a week she could create a strategy on what to do next. She wouldn't have to worry about looking over her shoulder all the time. She could think.

On the other hand, it would be a whole week with nothing but these new...friends. Sleeping, eating, and playing with them. All ducks, all the time. And if the past couple of days were any indication, it was probably safe to say Wildwing would be sure to make his presence known much of that time. She wasn't sure how she felt about this. He was intelligent, good-humored, and even fun. Easy to talk to. But there was something about him which made her nervous at times. There was an intensity to him she didn't quite know how to handle.

She looked up and met his eyes. Speaking of intensity. He was still waiting for her reply, watching her with deep blue eyes. His gaze was so focused. Feeling more than a bit unsettled, she nodded.

"I'll give you a week. We'll stay for a week. After that, school starts up again, and I have to be there. But we'll stay until then. Knowing Rook, he won't wait too long to make his presence known again."

Wildwing smiled and his intense eyes relaxed, sparkling with a kind of mischief again. "I'm glad to hear you say that. Because otherwise I was going to have to find a way to keep you here and I doubt you would've made it easy on me."

"Somehow that worries me even more." she said, then looked down at her arm. "But I promise we'll stay for the time being, so you can let me go now."

"Oh right, uh, sorry." he said, surprised at the reluctance he felt about breaking contact with her. He rubbed the back of his neck unconsciously and motioned for the door as she shivered at a sudden wind gust.

"Dinner should be here by now. Hungry?" he asked as he held open the door for her to pass through.

Lia smiled to herself. "It depends. What is duck cuisine like?" she asked, heading down the stairs. Her bare feet were so numb she had a hard time feeling the steps, and held her hand against the wall for support.

Wildwing chuckled. "Well, Dive mentioned going out, so I'm guessing triple spicy taco's."

"Buzz wanted those. They don't sound too bad."

"Ever had them?"

"No."

"Ah, I see." he said. Something about his tone alerted her.

"What?"

"Oh...nothing."

"Wildwing..."

"They're good. Honestly. A bit...ah...consuming, but good."

"Consuming?" she asked warily.

"Of the five senses. You know, they just sort of take over for a bit after you eat them. Sometimes the vision goes a bit cloudy. But it comes back after awhile."

"Who's the one with a gift for understatement now?" she asked as they continued down the steep stairs. Wildwing laughed but said nothing as they descended into the base. There was a strange sensation in his stomach, and for the moment he failed to understand that it had nothing to do with the fact he was hungry.

_Reviews most welcome :)_


	8. Chapter 8

**_Sorry, it's been awhile, I know :) Thanks to Mad-Eyed Owl, Angel362, and Closet Geek_**. _**You all encourage me to keep going!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own The Mighty Ducks. Not that I would have made much money off them if I had. Ahem...Pardon my Phil moment.**_

**Chapter 8  
**

The dreams were always the same.

_Muted shades of gray, there was no color in this world. Fog hung thick in the streets, so thick in fact, it seemed to drown all sound as well. There was an oppressiveness to it. It always appeared to be night, though she could never be sure. The street was long and cobblestoned, like the ones to be found in France or England, although she had never been to those places. But it was easy enough to imagine. Her feet were bare and made no sound as she walked slowly down the center of the street, looking around her, hoping to see something. Anything._

_Instead, all she saw was the dim outline of crumbling buildings, layered in the smoky fog and barely distinguishable. Continuing down the cobblestone street, she peered ahead, hoping for some end to the monotony. The pace quickened into a jog. Then a sprint. The end of the street never seemed to end, stretching on endlessly. Still, silently, she ran._

_Until, when it seemed she would never be able to stop, something reached out and snagged her ankle and she tumbled to the rough stone. Turning over onto her back, she looked up to see people hovering in a loose circle around her. At least, they seemed to have the general shape of people, the thick fog was obscuring them. One by one, each pressed a little closer as she stumbled to her feet, until eventually the fog dissipated and she could see them clearly._

_ The fog, it seemed, was a blessing. For when her companions came into focus she stifled a scream. They were featureless, nothing but a flat obelisk where their faces should have been. In some of those obelisk's she could see the ghost of her own reflection. Their clothes were all the same, dingy blue one pieces, torn and ripped on some, others not. They pressed in around her until they could come no farther without touching her. And they did not seem to want to touch her. In spite of their featureless faces, fear could be seen from them. The ones closest to her, in the inner circle, shied away from her with their bodies, even as the others pushed them farther forward._

_She wanted to speak, to ask them who they were, what were their names, what did they want? But no sound would come out of her mouth, no matter how wide she opened it or how hard she tried to force sound from it. Instead, on the barest hint of a breeze, was a single whispered word. They were asking her a question. _

_**Why?**_

Lia woke in a cold sweat, suppressing a scream in the darkness of the room. She did not want to wake the other person in residence. Instead she curled up against the wall, hugging her knees and reciting prime numbers in her head, trying to calm her pounding heart. After seven months of relief, the nightmares had returned home it seemed. She hated them most not for the fear they left her with, but for the self-loathing she always felt afterwards. To know who those people were, but at the same time not to know. She didn't know their names or their backgrounds. And, like her dream, they had been scared of her. So very frightened of her. She wished she could have talked to them.

She wished she could have spared them.

Across the room came a muffled groan, then a snort, and she found herself smiling unexpectedly. Buzz, once he had been told they were staying with the ducks for the week, had oddly insisted upon sharing a room with his sister. Despite his love for Nosedive's room, and the comic collection contained therein, he would not be persuaded to to sleep there. Which, Lia suspected, both relieved and annoyed Nosedive. So after an enlightening dinner (Wildwing had been right again, the taco's did indeed overwhelm the senses. The team found themselves laughing to the point of tears over her mad dash to the sink for water, wherein she managed to knock over Dukes plate, Buzz's root beer, and Grin's oolong tea), Wildwing had packed up his essentials, tossed a few things under the bed, and marched himself down to Nosedives room, telling her and her brother to make themselves at home.

She had managed to give Buzz a highly edited, yet still believable story regarding the events on the ice. It turned the incident into a fan-gone-too-far in his affections, with Wildwing having to escort him from the rink as a result. She avoided any mention of the fight. She didn't want him worrying. Although, she knew he suspected something was not right with her. Perhaps this was the reason for his strange insistence of sharing a room. Despite that, he was happy to be here, and regardless of her aversion to current living arrangements, she was glad for his sake.

Glancing at the clock she saw it was a little after five in the morning. Although she yawned deeply, the rest of her was making it known sleep would not be happening again for a while. Pulling on the soft cashmere robe a certain redhead had loaned to her, she stepped to the door and pushed the small, slightly glowing button at it's right side. The door opened with a soft hiss and she spared one last look for the small dark bundle across the room before stepping out into the dimly lit hall and closing it again.

Padding softly down the hallway she eventually found herself in the main rec room adjacent to the massive computer which was Drake One. It wouldn't be long, she was sure, before Buzz was wheedling Tanya into letting him on it. She had to admit that she was tempted as well. A toy of that scale was hard to ignore.

Shivering as she passed the rec room, she made her way to the kitchen. Unlike the rest of the mainly open design of the underground lair, the enlarged kitchen and dining area was mostly closed off, two swinging doors on either wall providing the only entrances. Stepping closer, she was mildly surprised to see a faint glow coming from under the door. Slowly, she pushed her way inside, just in time to see Wildwing pouring himself a cup of dark coffee. He seemed to be caught off guard by her presence and promptly missed the mug, spilling hot liquid all down the front of him. She grimaced, for the only thing he was wearing at the moment was a pair of loose drawstring pajama bottoms. Feathers or no feathers, that had to hurt.

Wildwings curses soon proved it did indeed hurt. Rushing to grab a towel she doused it with cold water as quickly as she could and pressed it to his bare stomach firmly. Soon the pain seemed to subside and his breathing became normal again. He looked down at her.

"Thanks." he said simply. She gave him a bit of a lopsided smile as she removed the towel and returned to the sink to douse it with cold water again.

"Sorry for startling you." she said, ringing out the towel. He shrugged.

"I'm not used to anyone else being up this early is all. I usually have the run of the kitchen at this hour."

She turned, the damp towel in her hand.

"Couldn't sleep?" she asked, returning to his side.

He shook his head. "Practice. I usually grab a cup of coffee and head up to the rink in the morning."

"An early bird." she stated, smiling slightly at her pun.

He rolled his eyes. Remembering the towel in her hand, she motioned for him to lean back against the counter. He complied, giving her some space to dab the cool cloth against the burning skin under his feathers. Lia, for her part, was unhappy with the red blotches she saw beneath the small light feathers on his flat stomach. She frowned up at him.

"Do you want some burn ointment?" she asked. He quickly waved the suggestion away. Truth be told, he was enjoying her attentions a bit more than he was comfortable with at the moment. Having her rub some salve on his stomach would not help matters one bit.

"Don't worry about it. I'm a quick healer." he said dismissively, taking the towel from her hands and turning away from her. He looked down at the spilled coffee and nearly empty pot. He knew it was only coffee, but still his morale dropped a bit at the sight. He sighed. "Looks like I'm going to need to make more. Want some?" he offered. Lia nodded almost eagerly and he chuckled.

"Looks like you're as addicted to this stuff as I am. If I ever get to go back home, I'm taking a few coffee trees with me." he announced, taking the pot from Lia, who had taken the initiative to rinse it out.

She sat down at the table, watching him fix another pot. "I've always thought if one was truly serious about obtaining world peace, they should threaten to destroy all coffee farms. That would get the planet's attention."

The next few minutes were silent as they watched the pot fill with dark liquid. Wildwing joined her at the table, smiling to himself as she laid her head on her folded arms and watched the coffee machine with green eyes made dark with sleep. It was obvious she was not a morning person.

"So, is my bed so bad to sleep in?" he asked eventually. She peered up at him as though in a daze.

"Huh?" came the articulate reply. He tried not to laugh outright. Defiantly not a morning person. Although the early morning look did suit her. Her blond hair was unbound and sleep tousled, spilling across her shoulders and down the length of her back. Her appearance was...appealing.

"Why are you up?" he asked, rephrasing his question. This seemed to snap her back to full consciousness again.

"Nightmare." she said, trying and failing to sound casual. He studied her a bit more closely.

"Want to talk about it?" he asked.

"No, thank you." she said, with a degree of finality. He sighed. Of course not.

Fortunately for both of them, the machine stopped percolating and Wildwing pushed himself up from the table. Reaching up into the well-stocked cupboards he pulled out a second mug then emptied the pot into both of their cups. He handed it to her and she took it gratefully, pausing for a long sniff before taking her first sip. Wildwing stayed on his feet.

"I'm going to head up." he said, moving for the door. Lia considered the ruined rink she remembered from the previous day.

"But it was destroyed." she pointed out.

Wildwing shook his head. "Tanya's had her 'bot's working on it all night. Trust me, by now it's as good as new."

Lia frowned. "If you say so."

"Want to join me?"

She looked up at him skeptically. "You're allowing me to leave?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you're allowed to leave, as long as you have one of us, preferably me, with you."

"Preferably you?" she asked.

He was unperturbed. "Yeah. I've faced this, what did you call it, Odic Force, before. I'd rather it be me than one of the others fighting it."

"Aren't you the noble one."

He grinned. "I try. Coming?" he asked, holding the door open for her with one hand, his other wrapped around his steaming mug. She pointed at her bare feet.

"Provided there are socks. No feathers, remember?"

He glanced down at her pale toes and nodded. "Right. Upstairs in the lockers. Can't vouch for whether or not you'll find clean ones though." he said.

"I'll look in either Tanya or Mallory's lockers. I'm sure there are clean socks in there." she said, exiting the kitchen. He followed on her heels.

"I get the feeling I'm being accused of something."

"Are there clean clothes of any sort in your locker?" she asked as they entered the newly repaired lift.

He gave the question a few moments thought. "Um...define the the word _clean_." he said. Lia grinned as the doors closed.

**********

Wildwing glided around the rink, moving the puck down the ice in a fluid movement born of long years of practice. Currently he was brushing up on his offensive plays. As the teams goalie he often became trapped in the mindset of being on the defensive. It was good to return to the offensive, which was a position he most often worked on in these early mornings. Plus, it was a good way to understand his teammates point of view on the ice. He was the team captain after all.

Speaking of. He was feeling a bit guilty about springing Buzz and Lia on them at the last minute. Not that they really minded. They had all been more than a little antsy since their last battle with Draganus. Being back in a semi-alert phase was almost more comfortable for them. Deep down, he knew this mindset was not healthy for any of them, but it was the way it was. They had all been survivors for too long. Which was probably one of the reasons why they agreed so readily to guarding their new tenants. Although, after seeing the rink and hearing Lia's overwhelming explanation of it all, they were...wary of her. Just a bit. What she described sounded entirely too much like magic and sorcery to them. And their experience with sorcery usually summoned the unwelcome image of a tall and thin saurian. Wraith had made their lives a living hell on more than one occasion. Wildwing didn't blame them for being uneasy.

Lia watched from atop the rink wall after assurances from Wildwing that a puck would not be sailing for her head during the course of practice. The mug in her hands did a good job of keeping her hands warm, while she had a thick pair of Tanya's socks on her feet to prevent them from frostbite. She didn't understand how Wildwing could stand it. On the ice, he had exchanged his pajama bottoms for thin sweats and had only added a light t-shirt after she had insisted on him wearing one. He seemed a bit confused about that. Apparently, when he was alone, he normally practiced with just the sweats and his skates. Said he became too warm otherwise. Besides, no pucks were going to unexpectedly whack him, so why bother with gear? She understood his reasoning, but had still insisted on the shirt. The tall drake was well put together, about as close to a perfect build as a mortal could get, and it was...well...annoyingly distracting. Seeing and attending to his burns in the kitchen had been hard enough, she refused to endure an entire practice section of the shirtless wonder.

What was worse, he was primarily unaware of it. He moved up and down the ice with a kind of unconscious grace, a look of contentment on his features. He loved what he did. It showed and as she watched, she felt a twinge of jealousy. The last time she had that look on her face had been more than five years ago. Nearly six now. She had been engrossed in the Odin Project. A lot of people had died because of that look.

Wildwing skated over and she shook herself from her thoughts. He came to a stop just in front of her, landing on the proverbial dime, as though he weren't on ice at all. He took a close look at her. "Penny for your thoughts?" he asked, taking the towel she offered.

She pushed her dark musings to the back of her mind. "Nothing. A little jealous of your ability. I don't know hockey, but even I can tell you're very good."

Wildwing's eyes widened a bit. "Thanks. I practice a lot, but most of my ability is thanks to Canard." he said, rubbing the back of his neck, a gesture of his she had come to associate with embarrassment.

"Who's Canard?" she asked curiously. Buzz had never mentioned him.

"He was, ah, is, my best friend." he said, wiping his face with the white towel. "We practiced every day together. We were inseparable. Even when the Saurian's invaded, he came and found me. He's the reason why my brother and I are alive."

He said it almost casually, as though he were telling her about a family event from his childhood, but his body language said something different. He avoided her eyes and his broad shoulders, while usually tall and strong, slumped slightly. Not much, but enough. Her voice softened in response.

"Did he come with you to Earth?" she asked carefully, and immediately regretted it. His shoulders slumped further and he turned his back to her on the pretense of scooping up the puck at his feet.

"No, umm...well he did. He tried at least." he said, straightening up with the small black disk in his hand, his back still turned. "Our ship was attacked by a dimensional worm on the way here and well..." His hand tightened on the puck. "He didn't make it." he finished.

Lia was kicking herself six ways from Sunday. She had managed to find the one subject which seemed to touch a nerve with the drake and then had asked him about it. Wildwing was a strong person. It was unsettling to see him like this. If he squeezed his hand any tighter there would be nothing of the puck left but black grit. Tentatively, she touched him lightly on the shoulder.

Wildwing responded by first twitching, then taking a deep breath, allowing his shoulders to reset themselves. He turned his head to her. "It's okay. I know he's out there somewhere. He's too damn stubborn to die on any of us I'll find him eventually." he said, making a conscious effort to lighten his voice to its normal, if slightly teasing, tone.

Lia could never quite say what prompted her to do what she did next. Perhaps it was the pain in his voice, maybe it was because she understood what it was to live with such pain. Or maybe it was because over the past two days she had watched the subtle ways in how his team relied on him to be strong. To always lead. Whatever the reason she found herself reaching her arms out to him, grasping the shoulder closest to her and pulling him back. He didn't resist much. He folded himself into her, accepting her embrace as though they were old friends, not recent acquaintance's.

It was an odd picture, the small human perched upon the thick guarding wall as the tall drake held onto her, nearly enveloping her with his size. He made no sound, and barely moved, but they stayed in the embrace for a long time. Lia sensed it was the first time in a while, perhaps a long while, that he had been able to let down his guard. It was a peaceful moment, because as she held him, smoothing down his hair much like she did when Buzz was frightened or anxious, she felt her own worries fade into the background. Most likely they would resurface soon, but for the moment, they were out of sight.

But like all things, it ended. Wildwing pulled away and smiled a bit awkwardly, once again rubbing the back of his neck and avoiding her eyes. Lia could feel the warmth on her face and she ducked her head, allowing her hair to shield her.

"Umm, sorry." Wildwing said. Lia shook her head slightly.

"No, no need." she said, raising her head a fraction. "Are you okay?"

He smiled. A genuine smile which took her off guard for a moment. "Yeah. I'm good." he said simply. His tone was back to normal and they stayed there for a few seconds, smiling at each other.

"Hey, why are you wearing a shirt bro?" came a familiar voice. They both jumped slightly as Nosedive walked out from the locker room, fully geared up, a bucket of black pucks in one hand and a stick in the other. Wildwing spared Lia one last conspiratorial smile before skating over in his brothers direction.

"She made me wear one." he quickly accused, pointing to her. And with that the moment was gone.

Nosedive made a face. "Wow, wouldn't have taken you for a prude Lia." he said. The only thing she could do was roll her eyes, toss her legs over to the dry side of the wall and hop down. Nosedive eyed her feet before telling her, "By the way, Buzz is awake. He was asking about you."

She nodded. "I should go find him."

"He's in the locker room."

"Thanks. Enjoy your practice." she said as she turned to leave.

"Oh, ah, Lia..." Wildwing said, trailing off. She looked back in time to catch Nosedive elbowing him in the ribs.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Umm...nothing. Forget it." he said.

Confused, and more than a little suspicious, she turned back towards the locker rooms.

"Are those Tanya's socks?" Nosedive called out as she walked away.

"I'll clean them." she announced as she pushed open the locker room door. The last thing she heard before turning to go inside was snickering, which she found odd until she faced the inside of the locker room.

She had seen Buzz in his skivvies before. Unfortunately it was nothing new, nor was it startling. However, seeing Duke and Grin in such a state was an entirely novel experience. All three appeared to be right in the middle of moving from sleep attire to hockey attire and they looked, for lack of a better term, shell shocked. Grin more so than Duke, and Buzz simply whined.

She had spent the last four and a half years of her life in the circus. Working with and around various stages of undress was something she was used to, for the most part. However, this experience felt distinctly awkward. Slapping a hand roughly over her eyes and turning promptly on her heels, she passed back through the swinging door, loudly expressing her apologies as she left.

She was met with the sound of laughter. Removing her hand from her eyes she spied Nosedive, curled up on the ice and having hysterics. Wildwing, looking guilty, seemed to be at least trying to suppress his laughter, but was failing. Since she couldn't adequately glare at both of them at once, she settled on the younger drake.

"You...." she began, but was having trouble finding the appropriate word. "are evil." she eventually settled for.

**********

"You set me up."

"No I didn't."

"You knew and you let it happen."

"No, I knew Nosedive was up to something but I didn't know he was planning despoiling your innocent eyes."

"The innocence of my eyes is not the issue here. You're a traitor."

"I acted out of self-preservation. May I remind you I'm sharing a room with my prankster brother? If I had ratted him out I don't want to think about what he would have done to me in my sleep." Wildwing argued.

Lia was about to protest but then thought the better of it. After the guys had come out of the locker room and the girls had had their turn, Mallory had filled her in on a few of Nosedive's more...inventive moments. Buzz certainly wasn't as bad, but she had been subject to more than a few fake snakes and cleverly hidden spiders over the course of the past seven months. Fear of one's sibling was an understandable fear.

So instead of arguing futilely about the matter further, she crossed her arms and tried to look stern. "I don't want to go through that again." she stated firmly.

He grinned. "I'll talk to him."

It was the end of a hour and a half session which had turned more into a game of 'keep Buzz upright on the ice' than hockey practice. Still clad in Mallory's robe, Lia had watched from from her former perch on the rink wall, cheering Buzz on as the 'game' progressed. Despite the fact she had barged in on him, Grin had approached her during the middle of practice and apologized for her having to see him in a state of undress. Red faced and mortified she had tried to stop him, but he had held out a restraining hand and skated serenely away. Duke had simply winked at her.

He had also found it amusing to skate by her more than a few times, subtly waggling his posterior in her direction. Mallory soon caught on to this and was kind enough to high stick him for it. Didn't make him stop, but at least the problem was being addressed without her having to throw anything at him.

Now, at the end of the normal time of practice, Nosedive and most of the others were still on the ice. Nosedive seemed to be making a real effort to teach Buzz how to keep his balance on his skates, and for this alone Lia was inclined to forgive him his transgression. He certainly had a devilish angel aspect to his personality. Perhaps this is what kept Mallory from beating him to a pulp. The kid was too damn charming to hurt.

Wildwing, now fully suited up to fill the role of goalie during practice, skated back onto the ice to help with Buzz. She smiled. Her brother probably thought he had died and gone to heaven. Mallory, while not actively trying to keep him up, was at least watching and offering the occasional comment from the sidelines while the others were gathered around him encouragingly. Tanya it seemed had a motherly side to her. She was the first to pick him up off the ice when he fell and even brush him off, admonishing the others when they laughed. Not that Buzz seemed to care. He was the center of attention for the team he worshiped. Life didn't get any better.

Suddenly remembering his sister, he waved over at her enthusiastically. As she gave him an encouraging smile and waved back, Duke broke away from the group and joined her at the wall. Although he winked at her, he refrained from any shaking of his backside.

"Ya look cute in those over sized socks." he said, leaning up against the wall with his elbows.

Lia sighed. "I was willing to give the benefit of the doubt, but I'm going to have to agree with Mallory on this one. You're a dirty old man."

"Ain't so old sweetheart. Besides, in case ya forget, you walked in on me, remember?"

She felt her face heat up again along with a renewed wrath for Wildwing's younger brother. "I said it and I'll keep saying it. I didn't mean to and I'm sorry." she said earnestly, trying to squash the urge to hide her face in her hands like a child.

Duke chuckled. His accent, as always, peppering his laugh with a bit of irony. "Don't worry 'bout it sweetheart. Trust me, I've been seen in worse states."

"I don't want to know."

"Your loss."

"Still don't want to know."

Another laugh, then a few moments of silence as he stared out at the rink. Buzz had fallen again and Wildwing was pulling him up, setting the boy between his skates and letting him balance his own between them.

"Pretty impressive huh?" he commented. Lia glanced over at him, confused.

"I'm sorry?"

Duke motioned out to the ice. "The rink. Tanya's 'bots do impressive work huh?"

"Oh. You're right. I didn't think Wildwing was serious about practicing this morning with how it looked yesterday."

Duke cocked a brow. "So ya remember do ya?"

Lia nodded, albeit a bit cautiously. She wasn't sure where he was going with this.

"Wasn't sure ya know. Ya seemed fairly out of it."

"I was tired." she agreed, making a conscious effort to keep her voice neutral. Minus her more personal history, she had told them most of what she had told Wildwing last night. She had even added a bit more explanation into the relationship of electromagnets for Tanya's benefit. She wasn't sure why he was bringing this up now.

"Don't blame ya. Seemed like a vicious fight. What with the blood and all." Despite his words, his voice was neutral as well, non-accusing. Still, Lia felt her heart speed up a few notches.

He pointed to a section of rink wall across the way. "Yeah," he continued, "see that spot over there? Your guy left quite a bit of himself there yesterday. 'Course, he was long gone before I could get to 'em. Despite his stupid name, the guy had stamina."

Lia looked over at him. "I can't figure out if you're just saying something to me or if you're _trying_ to say something to me."

"I was just thinkin'. How dangerous is the guy that ya felt the need t' strike out so severely? This uh, Odic Force? Ya used it effectively. Some would almost say brutally." he said, his gaze leveling with hers.

Lia tried to force down a swallow. This was not heading in a good direction. Problem was she didn't have an answer she could easily or quickly give to him. And Duke was different than Wildwing. He was older for one. She didn't feel the need to fight him as she did Wildwing. And, to a small degree, his particular brand of persistence reminded her of Rook. The Rook she knew as a small child, not the one she came to know as a teenager.

He didn't come closer or do anything remotely threatening like she feared he would. But he didn't back down either. He was waiting for some sort of an answer.

Looking down at her hands and feeling chastened, she gave the only answer she could at the moment. "It's not necessarily him. It's what he represents."

Duke stared at her for a good long while, recognizing the fear. She thought she was burying it, but to his eyes, it lingered dangerously just below the surface. Thinking back, he had been lucky enough to have belong to an organization that while criminal, were to a degree more honest and honorable than most legal institutions. The Brotherhood of the Blade was based on integrity, ingenuity, and a genuine concern for the few members allowed into its fold. Lia, it appeared, had not been so fortunate in Ravenseye.

Feeling a bit of guilt, he decided to back off. Reaching up, he frowned when she almost imperceptibly flinched. What had the girl experienced to make her this guarded, he wondered. Following through with the motion he ruffled her hair affectionately.

"Don't worry sweetheart, we ain't gonna let anything happen t' ya. Or Buzz." he said gently. Lia didn't look up from her hands but nodded. She didn't smile. He tried a different tactic.

"Ya know, I spent a very enjoyable evening wit' a friend of yours day before last." he commented lightly, effectively changing the subject. This refocused her attention nicely.

"Further confirmation of your lecherousness." she said, but now she was trying not to smile. He shrugged off the insult.

"Some women just can't resist the charms of an experienced older man."

"Ugh. Who was your victim?"

"Alania."

Lia tried not to laugh. "I should have known. Older men are her goal in life. How did Maria look?" she asked. Maria, her friend and former pupil, was Alania's occasional and reluctant roommate when they were on the road.

"Green." he answered. Poor woman had been sick the whole night and had kept apologizing for her appearance during the brief time he had spoken with her. "But she pulled herself out of 'er misery long enough t' talk with me for a bit. Ya know, she had some of the same magnets ya mentioned last night. The small glitterin' ones? I thought they were just part of the costume."

She grinned unexpectedly. "Well, I guess the secrets out on the Maiden's Beacon."

"I guessed right then? Ya use them t' create that fire don't ya?"

"More like concentrate and channel, and it's not precisely fire."

He thought back to the night they had seen her preform. "Which is why the fabric doesn't burn."

She nodded. "Along with the markings on the arms, you have the basic idea. They're both props and tools of the act."

"Creative."

Lia looked pleased and certainly less wary.

"Hey, old pervert! Back off, or do I have to beat you down again?" came the aggressive voice of Mallory. She had finally noticed the ex-thief's absence. Duke's eyes widened slightly and he abruptly took off, pursued by the vengeful redhead.

Lia watched him go trying, in spite of herself, not to laugh at the misfortune he had waiting for him at the end of Mallory's stick. She was still suppressing a smile when the loud clang of metal doors being slammed open and a familiar, if slightly hysterical voice reached her ears,

"Je ne peux pas la croire! L'enfant insolent et insensible!"

_"Oh no..."_ Lia thought to herself as she swung herself around to meet the frazzled eyes of her friend and former trainer. He was dressed in jeans and button down shirt today, an mild ensemble which was entirely undone by the presence of his coat. Not unlike the one he wore for performances, it was red and richly embroidered, but with silver rather than gold worn at shows. She supposed this was Andre's attempt to make it more 'street appropriate'. However, it's color and tendency to fly out menacingly at even the slightest hint of a draft made it stand out like a bull in a china shop. Typically extravagant.

"Andre please, calm yourself, for the love of god." came a second, slightly panicked voice.

Lia nearly groaned as her former apprentice trailed closely behind the stomping ringmaster, a dusky beauty with hair so black it took on a slightly bluish hue in the light. The rest of the team had by now heard the commotion, and was skating towards the wall as Lia jumped lightly down. Ignoring her sheepish smile, Andre marched directly up to her. Despite the fact he was only a few inches taller, he manged to glower convincingly. Her smile faltered.

"You're angry." she said quietly. Under the ringmaster's glare she felt fourteen again, being scolded once more for practicing without a net. Andre's look did not soften at her timidity. In fact, he was red in the face and obviously trying to reign himself in under the reminder of Maria's hand on his arm. He raised an accusing finger, pressing it to the tip of her nose.

"You....I...._insensible!_" he eventually spat out. Behind him Maria rolled her eyes and pulled him back, giving Lia some much needed space.

"Andre, love, please try to calm yourself." she said, her melodic voice made a bit sharper by the antics of her lover. She turned back to Lia, her brown eyes darker than normal. "Lia, I'm sorry, he simply lost it. But I have to admit I understand his reaction. We were all worried sick."

Lia stared at her in confusion, trying to understand why her friends were acting like she had committed some sort of crime.

"Ah, you see? You see? She does not even understand our words! Insensitive, stupid child!" Andre ranted, pacing behind Maria and pointing accusingly once more in her direction. Lia felt herself bristle.

"Maria, will you be so kind as to translate, since apparently I lack the brainpower to understand this genius myself?" she shot back as Andre continued to glare at her.

Maria sighed, looked up at the team, which was watching the scene with wide, uncomprehending eyes, then looked back to the fuming Andre. She motioned for him to sit. When he ignored her she turned on him, grasping the lapels of his flamboyant coat and guiding him to the nearest bleacher. He moved to get up, but something in her face must have made him think otherwise, for he reseated himself reluctantly. Satisfied, the dark haired woman turned to her expectant audience.

Much to Lia's surprise, she then marched up and flicked her hard at the center of her forehead.

"Maria!" Lia gasped, raising a hand to her offended brow. The older woman looked unrepentant.

"That, my friend, is for a lost nights sleep. Do you have any concept of how worried we were?" She looked at Lia's face and sighed. "Apparently not. Here's a bit of advice for you _senora pequena_. When you have a stalker after you, don't run out into the night without letting your friends know what's happening!"

Lia was struggling to speak. Maria was not given to raising her voice or losing to anger or irritation. It was one of the reason's why she was such a perfect match for Andre, who all to often let his emotion's rule him. "Maria, I'm sorry." she began shakily. "Believe me, I'm very sorry. But would you please tell me for what I'm apologizing? I don't understand..."

"Stupid..." Andre muttered under his breath. Maria ignored him.

"You're apologizing for having a stalker and not telling us. You're saying your sorry for packing your brother up without a word and then leaving us to search the city after we couldn't find you at your apartment." she answered.

"Stalker?"

"Blond, handsome, polite to a fault." Maria ticked off on her fingers. "Wealthy, has a fondness for yellow roses and is obsessed with you? Sound at all familiar?"

Lia's eyes widened as she glanced back and met Wildwing's eyes briefly. "Newt." she said softly.

"That's right, Mr. Newton Corvus himself. The rich blond goat intruded upon our sanctuary before sun even had a chance to rise yesterday. He has no respect for the artistic temperament!" Andre chimed in before Maria shot him a warning glance.

"Newton Corvus came at ten in the morning, a normally respectable hour." she said, obviously meaning to address the irate man behind her. "The point is he wouldn't leave. He kept trying to convince us to tell him where you lived. And when we wouldn't he offered money, and when we wouldn't accept that he moved to polite threats, if you can believe it."

Lia felt her head suddenly spin. So now Rook was threatening her friends as well. What else had he done? What else did he know about her life? She hadn't thought of this before. Now that he had narrowed down what city she was in, how much longer would it be before he knew everything about her life here? What was he prepared to do to that life? Newt had said it was only a matter of time. How much time exactly did he mean? Newt could have easily broken into Andre's records and found the answer to his question without all the fuss. But he had chosen to meddle directly with her friends. Why was he making the effort to be so visible? Rook valued secrecy.

On the other hand, Rook treated life as though it were a game to be won. He would plan ten steps ahead in the time it took you to decide on your next move. The only reason for him to be visible is if he had a reason to be visible. Which meant, whether she liked it or not, whether she understood it or not, she was now trapped in his game.

In the few seconds it took for her to reach this conclusion her head redoubled it's efforts to throw her off balance, and her hand groped backwards, hoping to find support against the rink wall. What it found instead was the solid form of Wildwing, who had unobtrusively slipped up behind her as Maria had been talking. His large hands rested softly on her shoulder's and he let her lean her body against his. It was a reassuring feeling, having something that large and warm at your back. Lia felt her head begin to settle and she concentrated on Maria's now anxious face.

"Lia love, are you well?" she asked, concerned at her uncharacteristic lack of balance. Feeling a slight squeeze to her shoulder's Lia collected herself and made and effort to smile back at her friend.

"I'm fine, just surprised is all. And I'm sorry he bothered you. I didn't expect him go to those lengths."

Maria frowned as her eyes moved from Lia to Wildwing, then back to Lia again. "I still don't think you understand. This isn't about us being bothered, this is about us worrying about your safety. After he left Andre and I ran to warn you, but you wouldn't answer the door." She paused in her recollections to offer Lia a guilty look. "I'm afraid we owe you an apology for what happened next."

"She will not get one from me. A broken window is a small price to pay for the worry she caused us." Andre retorted from his bench.

"You broke one of our windows?" came Buzz's frantic voice. Lia had forgotten he was there. Poor Buzz. The window's were his pride and joy.

Maria hurried to explain. "We smelled smoke, and of course our imaginations assumed the worse. So Andre swung out to the overhang and shattered one of the living room windows. We were so relived when we couldn't find a fire."

Lia and Buzz looked at each other. _The toaster oven_.

"But our relief was short lived." Maria continued. "You were no where to be found and we couldn't get you on your cell phones."

Lia flinched. She hadn't thought of that. By the time Maria and Andre were searching their apartment, she and Buzz were already below the pond. Reception generally was nonexistent below ground. She felt the grip on her shoulder's tighten slightly. Apparently Wildwing had just realized this as well.

"To say we panicked is an understatement. We went to the police, but they were no help at all." Maria said.

"The rude red-haired dwarf of a police chief said you needed to be gone at least three days to be considered a missing person. Does he have any concept of what could happen to you in three days?" Andre said darkly, coming up and standing behind Maria. This time she let him.

"Nearly the whole crew got involved at that point. We search through the night, in places we didn't even want to think of finding you in. Lia, you don't understand how worried we were."

Lia shifted her feet uneasily. "I'm starting to get an idea."

"Finally someone suggested looking here. And here you were." She paused for a long moment and looked up at Lia. Her eyes turned darker still and then brimmed with tears. "Oh love, I'm so glad your safe."

Maria embraced Lia gently and despite being several inches shorter and not all that older, managed to be motherly about it. Wildwing, relinquishing his hold on her as the dark haired woman pulled her closer, looked at over at Andre. The normally eccentric circus master had shed his surliness and was watching the two women with undisguised relief. Wildwing felt a sting of guilt. The man had gone without sleep the whole night, uprooted his entire staff, searched tirelessly for a person he obviously considered to be close as family. Family which he had simply taken over and more or less confined to the pond without any further thought as to who else might be affected. Granted, he had good intentions, and he wasn't letting Lia go, but that didn't change the fact that there were other people who worried about her.

"I'm afraid I owe you an apology, you and your entire crew Andre." Wildwing began. "I told Lia she needed to stay here after the incident with Newt yesterday. Both her and Buzz stayed here last night."

Lia looked up to see her former mentor's face slowly morph from it's rarely seen seriousness to outright mischievousness. A feeling akin to panic set in as his eyes subtly darted from her to Wildwing, a slight grin beginning to form at his mouth.

"Is that so?" he asked slowly.

Not wanting to let him proceed any further with his thoughts, whatever they may have been, Lia began telling them about the events of the previous day. The team listened patiently, their eyes widening slightly at the many edits she threw in, but they said nothing. For which Lia was grateful. Wildwing and the others already knew more than she was comfortable with them knowing, she didn't want Andre and Maria suffering under the same burden. The less they knew the more likely Rook would leave them alone in the future. Besides, Buzz was there, and she didn't want him more worried than he already was.

She ended up telling a similar story to the one she had given her brother the night before and it confirmed their opinion Newt was in fact, a disturbingly creepy stalker. They both encouraged her to stay at the pond. Now that they knew she was safe they apparently wanted to keep her inside the safety net as long as possible.

They left an hour later, but not before Lia assured them of regular reports for the future. Maria, having been barely over her bout with the flu when the crises had occurred, was starting to experience a relapse now that the adrenaline was flowing out of her system. She had left arm in arm with Andre, who couldn't seem to resist throwing a suggestive glance back at Lia and Wildwing, both of whom took an unconscious step away from each other.

A movement not lost on Nosedive or Duke.

As the team filed back to the locker rooms, the two fell in step with each other, lagging a bit behind.

"So what d' ya think kid?" Duke asked softly. Nosedive glanced over at his brother and shrugged.

"Not sure yet. Wildwing's not exactly quick on the uptake when it comes to these things. But, " He grinned over at the ex-thief. "he dreamed of her last night. I don't think he remembers it, but I know he did."

Duke rolled his eyes. "Oh come on Nosedive, it's Wildwing, how bad could it have been?"

Nosedive shook his head as they finally approached the locker door. "Well, it wasn't _bad_. But Wing's not a virgin Duke. I'll leave it at that."

_Reviews most welcome :)_


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